SW News: Christian charities in the UK are urging the government to reinstate its overseas aid funding to save hundreds of thousands of lives that are in danger. They have said the UK overseas aid cuts betray the world's most marginalized.
Ministers have previously warned that major cuts to the foreign aid budget could lead to an increase in poverty, hunger, and possibly global mortality. The International Development Committee has voiced concerns about the potential collapse of some projects, notably those that aid women and children.
According to a government study, thousands more women will have unsafe abortions in 2023–2024 as a result of UK aid reductions. The budget for the department's overseas development assistance for this year would be reduced by more than £900 million.
The study shows poor countries are being "short-changed" as a result of other government departments raiding the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office's aid budget after the government decided to spend a major portion of the Official Development Assistance budget in the UK.
In 2021, then Prime Minister Boris Johnson reduced its target from 0.7 to 0.5 percent of Gross National Income.
The report shows that a £ 30 million cut to aid for South Sudan this year will leave 27,000 children suffering from acute malnutrition. It would also potentially result in up to 3,000 deaths.
The international charity group urged the ministers to restore the aid budget and cancel the debt of countries whose people are in jeopardy. Jennifer Larbie, Campaigns Director for Christian Aid in the UK, demands that the aid budget be restored and that ending extreme poverty is a historical and moral obligation for the UK.