Analysis of the UK’s Changing Approach to supporting Development and Humanitarian Emergencies in Fragile & Conflict Affected States

Snapshot

Poverty and conflict are inextricably linked

• Poverty and conflict are widely understood to be intrinsically linked.

• A significant body of research shows that poverty increases conflict risk, and once conflict breaks out, it hits the poorest the hardest.

• Women and girls and marginalised communities are the worst affected by humanitarian crises.

• Fragility and conflict also reverse hard-won development gains and stunt opportunities for women and girls, children, youth, and marginalised communities.

• Within societies, Inequalities and poverty are important drivers of social exclusion, while conflict, social unrest and instability are its manifestation. Research indicates that inequality levels rise during conflict and can take decades to return to pre-conflict levels.6 Poverty is increasing in Fragile and Conflict Affected States, but declining everywhere else

• According to a list of classified states by the World Bank, there are 37 Fragile and Conflict Affected States (FCAS), or “countries with high levels of institutional and social fragility” that are “affected by violent conflict.” By 2030, poverty is likely to have reduced significantly in non-fragile states, but extreme poverty in fragile states will have increased, with two-thirds of the world’s extreme poor living in these regions, half of which will be children. The UK has established a strong reputation as a development expert in engaging in FCAS over the last decade.

• The UK has established a strong reputation as a development expert in engaging in FCAS.

• The UK has leveraged considerable financial and political influence to support reducing poverty in conflict situations, and played a leading role on the international stage in leveraging strong commitments to FCAS.

• The UK uses Official Development Assistance (ODA) to respond to humanitarian emergencies, providing much needed humanitarian assistance. The UK has also used ODA to play an important part in reducing conflict and tackling the root causes of conflict Recent changes in strategic focus and funding decisions continue to risk increasing existing fragilities in Fragile and Conflict Affected States, with warnings of further economic damage, regional instability and rises in violence.

• Recent data shows that the total UK bilateral ODA to Fragile and Conflict Affected States fell by 40% in 2021 from 2020 – a cut of £740 million.

• The proportion of FCDO bilateral ODA to Fragile and Conflict Affected States, which was 57% in 2017, fell from 54% in 2020 to 43% in 2021.

• Moreover, only 41% of the UK’s ‘priority countries’ in 2020 have a place on the World Bank’s Fragile and Conflict-affected Situations list.

• Despite this high vulnerability, the more fragile a country is, the less ODA each resident living below the poverty line received.

• For example, those living below the poverty line in fragile states received less FCDO ODA per person in 2021 than people living below the poverty line in non-Fragile States. People living below the poverty line in countries classified as ‘medium intensity conflict’ received on average 0.304 GBP of bilateral ODA, whereas people living below the poverty line in countries classified as ‘high institutional and social fragility’ received 0.68 GBP of bilateral ODA. In non-Fragile states, people living below the poverty line received 3.387 GBP of bilateral ODA per person.

• The cuts were not consultative or transparent, damaging hard-earned relationships with local actors.

They were also at direct odds with previous commitments that prioritise the triple-nexus, and current Government objectives, such as the creation of the Conflict Strategic Framework.

Source: Syria Relief