Written question asked by Irvine Patnick (Conservative), in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 25 February 1997. It was answered by Liam Fox (Conservative) on Tuesday, 25 February 1997 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: What is the current UN target for aid for developing countries; how many countries currently meet this target.

Answer: Sir Irvine Patnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the current UN target for aid for developing countries; how many countries currently meet this target; and if he will make a statement. [17286] Dr. Liam Fox: The UN target for Official development assistance to developing countries which are on part 1 of the OECD development assistance committee list, remains at 0.7 per cent. of GNP. Only four countries currently meet it: Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands and Sweden. In 1995, the United Kingdom development programme accounted for 0.28 per cent. of GNP, slightly above the average for all donors of 0.27 per cent. Among the G7, the UK provides a greater proportion of GNP than the US, Japan and Italy. The UK exceeds the UN target of 1 per cent. of GNP for combined official and private sector flows to developing countries, providing 1.38 per cent. of GNP for such assistance--second only to the Netherlands. These substantial resource flows, coupled with the UK's record of support for international debt relief initiatives, represent a significant contribution to reducing poverty and promoting sustainable development in the world's poorest countries.

Secondary information