Overseas Aid budget slashed for the second year in a row
CAUTION and harmony are the watchwords for the Overseas Aid & Development Commission, after its aid budget was slashed for the second year in a row.
The OADC gave back £1m. to the public purse in 2020 – that being its cash balance at the time – in order to help mitigate the financial pressures the Bailiwick faced at that point.
The budget report debated by the States last week confirmed another reduction of £830,000 this year, leading to a budget
of £2.32m., which equates to
about 0.07% of Gross Domestic Product.
Next year will see a return to a more typical £3.23m. (0.09% of GDP), barring any further ‘one-off’ reductions.
‘We will not be asking for the £1m. back, nor the £830,000,’ said OADC president Chris Blin.
‘We commissioners would love an increase in budget but it will not be possible, given our record to date.
‘However, it is very much in our mandate to bring it up to 0.2% of GDP by 2030.’
The States set that as a target in 2019.
‘We need to ensure that we do this with caution and in harmony with other competing demands for public money,’ Deputy Blin said.
The OADC achieved its latest budget reduction by deferring the launch of its large grants programme until next year.
Small grants have continued, along with disaster relief and other forms of aid including supporting fair trade.
In all, 182 requests were made for aid, of which 48 were received funding, capped at £50,000.
Jersey has set its aid target at 0.26% of Gross Value Added, which is typically higher than GDP.
Deputy Blin said he was keen to do more work alongside schools to shore up public acceptance of the importance of aid contributions.
‘If we can share the work that’s done overseas with our school pupils,’ he said, ‘we hope it will lead to a greater understanding and that pupils and parents will see what impact it has on hundreds of thousands of lives.’
The OADC’s annual report for 2019 was delayed and is now expected to be published in the States billet for next month’s meeting.
The equivalent report for 2020 is currently scheduled to be published in the first quarter of 2022. Deputy Blin said these would provide further details of the Impact Investment Fund, which provides middle- to low-income countries with micro-financing and investment in sanitation.
This was not counted in the main aid budget of the commission and is expected to see financial returns.
More than £36,000 has also been raised by islanders for VaccinAid, at the invitation of the OADC. The campaign aims to distribute Covid-19 vaccines to developing nations.
