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An analysis of the UK’s changing approach to supporting development and humanitarian emergencies in fragile and 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 the risk of conflict, and that once conflict breaks out, it hits the poorest people the hardest.
• Women and girls and marginalized communities are most affected by humanitarian crises.
• Fragility and conflict also reverse hard-won development gains and stunt opportunities for women and girls, children, youth and marginalized communities.
• Within society, inequality and poverty are important drivers of social exclusion, while conflict, social unrest and instability are its manifestations. Research shows that levels of inequality rise during conflict and can take decades to return to pre-conflict levels.
• According to a list of states classified 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 in non-fragile states is likely to decline significantly, but extreme poverty will increase in fragile states, with two-thirds of the world’s extreme poor living in these regions, half of whom will be children. The UK has established a strong reputation as a development expert for involvement in FCAS over the past decade.
• The UK has established a strong reputation as a development expert for involvement in FCAS.
• The UK has leveraged significant financial and political influence to help reduce poverty in conflict situations, and has taken a leading role on the international stage to leverage strong commitments to FCAS.
• The UK uses Official Development Assistance (ODA) to respond to humanitarian crises, providing much-needed humanitarian aid. The UK has also used ODA to play an important part in reducing conflict and addressing the root causes of conflict. Recent changes in strategic focus and funding decisions continue to threaten existing fragility, with warnings of further economic losses in fragile and conflict-affected states. Increased instability and violence.
• Recent data shows that total UK bilateral ODA to fragile and conflict-affected states falls by 40% from 2020 to 2021 – a cut of £740 million.
• The proportion of FCDO bilateral ODA to fragile and conflict-affected states, which was 57% in 2017, decreased from 54% in 2020 to 43% in 2021.
• Furthermore, in 2020 only 41% of the UK’s ‘priority countries’ are on the World Bank’s list of fragile and conflict-affected situations.
• Despite this high vulnerability, the more fragile the country, the less ODA per inhabitant living below the poverty line.
• For example, people living below the poverty line in fragile states received less FCDO ODA in 2021 than people living below the poverty line in non-fragile states. People living below the poverty line in countries classified as ‘moderate intensity conflict’ receive an average of 0.304 GBP bilateral ODA, while those living below the poverty line in countries classified as ‘high institutional and social fragility’ receive 0.68 GBP bilateral ODA. In non-fragile states, people living below the poverty line receive 3.387 GBP bilateral ODA per person.
• The cuts were not consultative or transparent, damaging hard-earned relationships with local artists.
They were also in direct conflict with previous commitments that prioritized the triple-nexus and the objectives of the current government, such as the creation of a conflict strategic framework.
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