Source · Select Committees · International Development Committee
Recommendation 8
8
Accepted in Part
Paragraph: 38
Calculate and justify minimum bilateral ODA for WASH, ensuring integrated SRHR programmes
Recommendation
Access to clean water and the provision of adequate sanitation and hygiene reduces the risk of maternal and newborn mortality. In complementarity to its approach on SRHR spending, the FCDO should calculate and justify a minimum bilateral ODA percentage that it must spend on WASH to reach its development targets. This target should not be lower than 2% per annum. The FCDO should also ensure that WASH and SRHR programmes adopt a complementary and integrated approach.
Government Response Summary
The FCDO partially agrees, committing to an integrated approach for WASH and SRHR and detailing its £18.5 million WASH Systems for Health programme. However, it rejects setting a minimum bilateral ODA percentage for WASH, citing the need for budget flexibility.
Paragraph Reference:
38
Government Response
Accepted in Part
HM Government
Accepted in Part
Partially Agree 26. The FCDO’s Ending Preventable Deaths (EPD) and the Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) approach papers highlight the integrated nature of the challenge and commits the FCDO to an integrated approach in response - highlighting the critical importance of strong health systems, nutrition, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) to SRHR. 27. The FCDO’s £18.5 million WASH Systems for Health programme is working to support the provision of safe, reliable, and resilient water supply, sanitation and hygiene services. By supporting governments to strengthen the systems needed to provide access, the programme will help people living in poor communities across Asia and Africa, including in rural areas and in informal settlements in towns and cities. 28. This programme will support improvements to water, sanitation and hygiene services in health facilities where it will have an impact on reducing infection and improving quality of care received by patients. The FCDO’s new systems approach to WASH will enhance the sustainability of WASH services will ensure that women are empowered to take informed decisions about the services they receive; and aims to attract new public and private finance. 29. For the reasons mentioned under conclusion/recommendation 3, the FCDO prefers to protect budget flexibility than set additional sector spending targets.