Overseas development aid will fall from 0.5% of the UK’s gross national income to 0.3% – a cut of about £6bn. The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) opposes the decision of the UK Government to institute further cuts to its global aid budget, noting that the work of RCPCH Global team, as many other health-focused organisations currently operating in low-income countries, will be profoundly impacted by this decision.
RCPCH Global Officer, Dr Sue Broster, said:
This decision puts at risk the lives of children – lives which can be saved through the simple, cost-efficient health care systems and services that the UK has taken a lead role in supporting in some of the poorest and most fragile places around the world.
The government must swiftly set out a roadmap showing how it will reinstate aid the 0.7% target. This is not only the right approach, but the strategic approach for a safer and more prosperous future both in the UK and overseas.