MSF UK responds to UK Government's reduction to aid budget
Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is concerned about yesterday’s announcement from the UK Government which confirmed a reduction in the UK’s aid budget for the next two years.
UK aid will drop from 0.58 percent in 2023 to 0.5 percent of gross national income (GNI) for the next two financial years.
Dr Natalie Roberts, Executive Director of MSF UK, said, “Repeated cuts by successive governments to an already depleted aid budget has had a catastrophic impact on the health needs of people around the world.
“It is therefore deeply disappointing that the UK Government has failed to commit additional funding for overseas aid in the October budget, at a time when hunger and humanitarian need is increasing. UK overseas aid must be increased, protected and directed to support the needs of the most vulnerable people living in desperate humanitarian contexts.”
The Government has signalled its intention to reduce aid spending on asylum costs but has failed to change the current approach of using Official Development Assistance (ODA) on domestic refugee costs. This represented 28 percent of the overall aid budget in 2023.
MSF does not take UK Government funding, but we are concerned about the impact a sustained reduction in aid could have in countries affected by conflict, natural disasters and disease outbreaks where we work.
Desperate humanitarian need
In South Sudan, MSF teams are responding to concurrent emergencies, including severe flooding, food insecurity, disease outbreaks and massive displacement crisis from the conflict in neighbouring Sudan, where nearly 700,000 people have crossed the border.
While pressure on health services and aid organisations is likely to increase, the UK has reduced its aid budget from £156 million in 2020, when it was the second largest bilateral donor, to £69 million in 2024.
The UK has slashed its aid budget to Yemen by over half from £221 to £101 million in 2023. This is a country reeling from over eight years of conflict that has left its health system in a state of near collapse.
MSF teams continue to deal with complex health needs because of the war, such as malnutrition and mental health support, as well as disease outbreaks for measles, cholera and diphtheria.
Providing protection to people seeking safety in the UK is an integral part of the Government’s moral, ethical and legal responsibility and must be adequately funded. This must not come at the expense of people living in desperate humanitarian crises around the world.
