Written question asked by Sydney Chapman (Conservative) on Tuesday, 7 November 2000, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 13 November 2000. It was answered by Lord Hain (Labour) on Monday, 13 November 2000 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of children in Iraq who are chronically malnourished and the proportion of the total number of children this represents.

Answer: Sir Sydney Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of children in Iraq who are chronically malnourished and the proportion of the total number of children this represents. [137682] Mr. Hain: There are no reliable figures on child malnutrition in the centre and south of Iraq. Despite UN efforts, the Iraqi regime has refused to cooperate with a group of independent experts appointed by the UN to prepare a comprehensive report and analysis of the humanitarian situation in Iraq. In the meantime the UK continues to advocate and support initiatives through the oil for food programme to better target the UN's humanitarian effort to help the most vulnerable in Iraq. This has already improved the situation on the ground. In northern Iraq, for example, where the UN rather than Iraqi authorities run the humanitarian programme, infant mortality is now lower than before sanctions were imposed.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 356 c508-9W;356 c509W; 137682
Session: 1999-00
Subjects: Children Health Humanitarian aid Iraq United Nations UN resolutions Malnutrition
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk