Tag: Africa

Bishop of St Albans asks about effects of climate change in the Horn of Africa

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 20th March 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked  His Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to increase climate funding available to drought-affected and flood-prone communities in the Horn of Africa.

Lord Benyon (Con, FCDO): Building climate resilience is central to the UK’s work in the Horn of Africa where flooding and drought have impacted tens of millions of people.

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Bishop of Albans asks about increase in piracy off the Horn of Africa

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 5th March 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent increase in piracy off the Horn of Africa.

Lord Benyon (Con, Foreign Office): While the causes of recent maritime incidents in the Horn of Africa are unclear, the UK continues to monitor the situation in the region closely.

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Bishop of St Albans draws attention to repercussions of climate change in the Horn of Africa

The Bishop of St Albans spoke in a debate on the effects of climate change on migration on 14th September 2023, drawing particular attention to the food and water security crisis in the Horn of Africa:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I thank the noble and right reverend Lord, Lord Harries of Pentregarth, for securing this debate, for his excellent and comprehensive introduction and particularly for setting out so clearly some of the work undertaken by international bodies. I will not repeat any of that, because he spelt that out very clearly for us. As he noted, the climate crisis is at the heart of famines, conflicts and food insecurity across the globe today. We have already seen the disastrous effects of climate change in many parts of the developing world.

I want to focus on a few thoughts, particularly on the Horn of Africa, where we see this perhaps most clearly at the moment. Indeed, a terrible natural humanitarian disaster is unfolding before our very eyes, with thousands now fleeing the region in search of food security and water. It is vital to develop an effective strategy to mitigate the impacts of climate change in the developing world. The Horn of Africa is currently facing a climate-induced drought and a serious food crisis affecting more than 36 million people, more than half of whom are children. UNICEF estimates that up to 5.7 million children need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition.

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Bishop of Manchester asks about reduction of African countries’ debts

The Bishop of Manchester received the following written answer on 12th September 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the statement by African Faith Leaders on 8 August calling for a reduction of debt across African countries.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about support for journalists in the Horn of Africa

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 26th June 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support journalists, particularly women journalists, in the Horn of Africa.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about migration trends in the Horn of Africa

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 17th April 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent trends in population migration in the Horn of Africa, given the famine in that region.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park (Con): Across East Africa levels of displacement are increasing due to the humanitarian impacts of conflict and climate change. For example, the International Organisation for Migration estimate that, in 2022, 2.8 million people were displaced by drought across Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia. Armed violence continues to cause significant displacement including of 2.2 million refugees from South Sudan who are currently hosted in the region.

Hansard

Bishop of Leicester asks about humanitarian aid to East Africa

The Bishop of Leicester received the following written answer on 15th March 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Leicester asked His Majesty’s Government whether they plan to support (1) an international pledging conference to encourage humanitarian assistance to the East Africa region, and (2) negotiations for the renewal of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park (Con): The UK is working closely with our partners to raise the profile of the crisis in East Africa to help secure a broad base of donor funding. We are considering all options on how best to do this, building on our existing life-saving aid, international partnerships and work to ensure a robust response from humanitarian and development actors.

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Bishop of St Albans leads debate on famine in the Horn of Africa

The Bishop of St Albans tabled a question for short debate on famine in the Horn of Africa on 7th February 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to alleviate the consequences of the famine in the Horn of Africa.

My Lords, it is perhaps fitting that this debate takes place on the day of the memorial service for the late Lord Chidgey, who was so passionate about all things to do with Africa and would have shared many of the concerns that I suspect are going to be talked about in our one hour together.

It is with sadness that I stand here today to address this problem, although I hope that our debate may in some small way raise awareness of what is an extraordinary tragedy unfolding before us. As many noble Lords know, this region is currently experiencing one of the longest and most severe droughts on record. This, coupled with conflict and displacement, has led to an unprecedented food and nutrition emergency affecting almost 40 million people. The UN has already said that

“Famine is at the door”

in some parts of Somalia.

We are already seeing the effects of this crisis. UNICEF estimates that up to 5.7 million children in the region require treatment for acute malnutrition, with 1.8 million already experiencing it. This famine, initially caused by climate change, has been compounded by a series of other factors, making it far worse than what we have seen before. An outbreak of locusts, described by the UN as the worst in 25 years, has ravished crops across the region. The ongoing civil wars in Ethiopia and Somalia have displaced millions and made provision of food aid even more difficult.

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Bishop of Gloucester asks about women’s education in sub-Saharan Africa, with a view to HIV prevention

The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on women’s education in sub-Saharan Africa, during a debate on government plans to combat HIV, tabled for World AIDS day on 1st December 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, in sub-Saharan Africa, adolescent girls and young women are three times more likely to acquire HIV than adolescent boys and men. Can the Minister say what is being done to fund programmes which help to keep girls in education, which we know reduces their vulnerability to HIV by up to 50%?

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Bishop of Coventry asks about sustainable development and support for sub-Saharan Africa

The Bishop of Coventry asked a question about the UN Sustainable Development Goals on 13th October 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Coventry: My Lords, the latest Goalkeepers report from the Gates Foundation finds that we need to speed up the pace of our progress by five times if we are to stand any chance of meeting the goals. Mindful of the noble Lord’s earlier answers, does he agree with the report’s emphasis on providing to sub-Saharan Africa and other low-income regions the necessary support and investment in agricultural R&D to provide for innovative inventions such as drought-resistant maize and short-duration rice?

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