Select committee: International Development Committee
Recommendation 38
Seventh Report - Progress on tackling the sexual exploitation and abuse of aid beneficiaries
Published 14 Jan 2021
Paragraph 137
Addressed to Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
International Development Committee Sexual exploitation and abuse in the aid sector: next steps All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative has lost its way since Foreign Secretary Hague left the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The permanent team of staff dedicated to the initiative is small and funding has dwindled. Similar to our findings for the aid sector, it could be improved through better engagement with local populations. The FCDO should use the merger as an opportunity to reinvigorate the PSVI and the Gender Equality Division should develop a coherent strategy for the initiative which is coordinated with the wider priorities of the Unit. The FCDO should consider how the Research and Evidence Division can help to improve monitoring and learning so the initiative can be strengthened in future and adopt longer funding cycles to enable long-term planning.
From: International Development Committee, Seventh Report - Progress on tackling the sexual exploitation and abuse of aid beneficiaries (HC 605), paragraph 137, 14 January 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 6 April 2021.
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government welcomes the Committee's report and states that, unless otherwise stated, it agrees with each of the 30 recommendations, partially agreeing with some and disagreeing with others.
- On the recommended full audit of whistleblowing practices, the government says it does "not agree", citing resource and time costs, and prefers assessing partners before funding and ongoing monitoring.
- On making aid work a regulated activity requiring Enhanced DBS checks, it disagrees with the recommendation "as written", but has set up a working group to explore the issues faced in checking criminal histories.
- On reporting NDA numbers, it partially agrees: it agrees NDAs must not be misused but does not think counting them is effective, and is "actively exploring" adding clearer language to funding templates and due diligence.
- On annual reporting, it "certainly intend[s]" to replicate DFID's safeguarding section in the FCDO's annual report, though the structure is "still to be finalised". On the UN trust fund for victims, it says it has "recently agreed to do this".