UK allocates £41.5m in uplift aid to Pakistan

The UK has renewed its strong commitment to its development partnership with Pakistan and will provide £41.5 million in bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the year 2023-24, a statement from the British High Commission in Islamabad said

The aid will focus on accelerated family planning, girls’ education, and revenue mobilisation, investment and trade, it added.

According to the statement, the new Pakistan Country Development Partnership Summary (CDPS), published by UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, set out a refreshed approach to the UK-Pakistan development partnership..

The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) published its new Pakistan Country Development Partnership Summary (CDPS) on July 17, which indicates a refreshed approach to the UK-Pakistan development partnership.

The strategy underlines a transition from a traditional aid relationship to a UK-Pakistan partnership for mutual benefit. It aims to unlock progress against Pakistan’s constraints to growth, including population dynamics, climate vulnerability, gender equality and economic structure.

The summary issued by the CDPS is aligned with Pakistan’s long-term development strategies and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The strategy aims to: deliver a step change in human capital; support Pakistan to adopt a more resilient and cleaner growth path; support Pakistan to become a more open society; promote macroeconomic stability, private sector-led growth and resilience to climate shocks.

Read Pakistan unveils first ever SDGs Investor Map 2023

Moreover, CDPS covers programming under the UK’s Conflict Stability and Security Fund, which underpins UK-Pakistan cooperation on organized crime, regional stability and hate speech.

The CDPS was published alongside FCDO’s Annual Report, which sets out the FY23-24 UK-Pakistan bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocation as £41.5m.

The Annual Report also indicates potential significant growth in UK-Pakistan ODA in the FY24-25, based on an expected increase in FCDO’s overall ODA budget for the year.

The UK has provisionally allocated a greater share of next year’s ODA to Pakistan, reflecting its aim to boost efforts to strengthen climate resilience and reduce humanitarian risks after last year's devastating floods.

The programme aims to deliver work through existing, scaled-up programmes as well as new programmes which are expected to be announced in due course.

“I am delighted to share our renewed strategy for the UK-Pakistan development partnership,” said Jo Moir, development director at the British High Commission, adding that the new strategy marks a shift from a traditional aid-based relationship.

“We will work with Pakistan to unlock progress against critical challenges: population dynamics, climate vulnerability and the economy,” said Moir. “And we want to use all areas of UK-Pakistan Dosti [friendship] - our diplomatic efforts, trade relationship, people-to-people links, development programmes and defence engagement - to achieve these goals.”