Issue 249

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is on an independent Somaliland; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney, Minister of Trade & Investment), Department of Trade and Industry) Hansard source

We do not recognize Somaliland as an independent state, neither does the rest of the international community. The UK has signed up to a common EU position and to many UN Security Council Presidential Statements, which refer to the territorial integrity and unity of Somalia. Nevertheless, the UK is aware of the position of the Somaliland authorities and of opinion within Somaliland. We hope that Somaliland will engage in early dialogue with the Transitional Federal Authorities in Somalia and that a mutually acceptable solution for their future relationship can be agreed. We readily acknowledge Somaliland's achievements over the last decade and continue to support progress and stability in Somaliland

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much multilateral aid the UK has given to Somaliland in each of the last five years; through which organizations it has been distributed; and if he will make a statement.

Much of the funding that DFID channels through multilaterals is not specific to Somaliland. However, we estimate that about 30-40 per cent. of the overall multilateral assistance to Somalia benefits Somaliland. The imputed UK multilateral share to Somalia is as follows:

£ million
	EC	Other	UN	World Bank	Grand total
2000	3.5	0.0	1.0	0.0	4.5
2001	2.9	0.0	0.9	0.0	3.8
2002	1.9	0.0	0.9	0.0	2.8
2003	2.8	0.0	0.8	0.0	3.6
2004	3.6	0.0	0.6	0.0	4.2
Note: Figures for 2005 have yet to be published.

DFID's bilateral programme to Somalia also channels some aid through multilaterals. The following is a breakdown over the last five financial years:

£ million
Financial year	Other	UN	World Bank	Multilateral total	Bilateral total	Percentage of bilateral programme channeled to multilaterals
2001-02	0.1	0.4	0.0	0.5	1.7	27.2
2002-03	0.0	1.3	0.0	1.3	3.1	41.6
2003-04	0.0	2.5	0.0	2.5	4.0	62.5
2004-05	0.0	2.8	0.1	2.9	5.8	50.7
2005-06 (Provisional)	0.0	10.3	0.1	10.4	18.8	55.7

The following are some examples of DFID's current support to UN agencies working in Somaliland:

UNESCO Primary Textbooks Programme and a national education programme with UNICEF

ILO's Employment, Enterprise and Livelihoods Programme (EEL) contributing to economic growth and diversification in Somaliland

UN-Habitat's activities to strengthen and expand urban planning and capacity building of local councils as part of the EC/UNDP-funded Somalia Urban Development Programme (SUDP)