To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department provides to internally displaced Christians who wish to return to the Nineveh Plains area of Iraq.
Answered on
21 May 2018
Humanitarian, stabilisation and reconstruction needs in Iraq are amongst the most severe in the world, with many millions of people requiring support. The UK prioritises carefully to ensure our funding benefits the most vulnerable people. UK funding is distributed on the basis of need, to ensure civilians are not discriminated against on the grounds of race, religion, or ethnicity. This approach is enabling Christians in Iraq to benefit from UK aid.
For example, the UK has contributed £14.45 million to the UN’s Funding Facility for Stabilisation (FFS), which helps the Government of Iraq re-establish basic services in areas liberated from Daesh, helping displaced Iraqis return to their places of origin. The FFS is heavily focussed on the Ninewa plains, and is implementing over 200 projects in areas where Christian communities reside. These projects are diverse in scope, and all are targeted at the most acute stabilisation needs, for example the rehabilitation of housing and infrastructure and the reopening of hospitals and schools.