Corruption ‘ruining UK aid budget’
Millions of pounds in overseas aid projects is being wasted through a combination of corruption and mismanagement, according to a new report.
The National Audit Office said the Department for International Development (DfID) is suffering from “limited experience” in insecure countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq.
The government’s spending watchdog cited the specific example of a £20 million counter-narcotics programme in Iraq that was brought down by local officials grossly over-billing the project’s number of work days.
As a result of the project’s failure, drug cultivation has increased in Afghanistan, leading to accusations that DfID needed to “learn new skills and up its game”.
“Today’s report makes clear that DfID needs urgently to improve its performance in conflict zones like Iraq and Afghanistan,” said shadow international development secretary Andrew Mitchell.
“I hope [international development secretary] Douglas Alexander will look carefully at this report,” Mr Mitchell continued.
“We need action to improve DfID’s performance in backing up the British military effort to win the battle for hearts and minds.”
In its report, the NAO said that only half of the government’s projects achieve their aims, with a quarter suffering from fraud or financial problems.
It also warned that staff’s lives were being put at risk due to inadequate security provisions, despite £250,000 being spent on individual workers based in Afghanistan.
“DfID staff work hard – often in difficult and dangerous situations – to deliver real benefits to some of the world’s most vulnerable people,” noted NAO head Tim Burr.
“DfID could still make better use of its teams’ growing experience in this field to adapt standard aid practices to meet the challenges presented by insecurity.”
A departmental spokesperson told inthenews.co.uk it was reviewing its working practices in insecure environments and fragile states.
“Insecure states are by their nature extremely difficult and sometimes dangerous places for staff to work and conditions vary widely between them,” the representative said.
“Lessons from one are not necessarily applicable elsewhere.”
