Does the UK give more aid than other countries?

The UK gives more in international aid than any other developed country apart from the United States, according to figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

And in terms of donations as a proportion of national income, the UK is in the top five, behind countries such as Sweden and Norway.

The amount given in international aid remains politically charged - with arguments such as whether the UK government should be spending money on flood barriers at home rather than trying to tackle poverty in other countries.

There have also been debates about whether the right people are receiving overseas aid, with worries it might be subsidising corrupt or coercive regimes.

Or should we see aid as not just a humanitarian responsibility, but a form of enlightened self-interest, with long-term, soft-power benefits from helping to shape emerging economies?

The OECD figures, comparing levels of overseas development aid, shows that by any measure, the UK is among the biggest donors, ahead in cash terms of countries such as Germany, France and Japan.

This is government aid - not voluntary donations through charities - and it shows that for many countries, the cash donated does not keep up with the promises.

More:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-35226478

New UK international development minister Nick Hurd wants to boost off-grid solar power in the only region where those without access to modern energy is set to rise 

For a man who has only recently started his job, international development minister Nick Hurd seems sure of his priorities.

“Energy Africa makes perfect sense to me,” he says. “In the next few weeks and months we’re going to be shaping what DfID [the Department for International Development] does in the next five, arguably 10 years. But improving access to energy in Africa is my particular focus at the moment.”

After spending four years as minister for civil society under the coalition government, Hurd has been parachuted into the job at DfID to replace Grant Shapps, who resigned in the midst of allegations that bullying in the Tory partyhad led to the death of one of its activists.

Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region where the number of people lacking access to electricity is set to rise

Although his new portfolio covers a range of issues including water, climate change, sanitation, education and health, his immediate priority is to “keep up the momentum” of the Energy Africa campaign launched by Shapps in October.

Hurd has his sights set on the seventh sustainable development goal: universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services by 2030. But sub-Saharan Africa is currently 50 years behind, the only region in the world where the number of people denied access to modern forms of energy is set to rise and, based on current trends, predicted to hit the goal by 2080.

More:

http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2016/jan/07/lighting-up-africa-the-uks-plan-to-expand-access-to-energy-solar-power