The UK government just struck another devastating blow to women and girls around the world by announcing plans to slash the already shrunken UK aid budget. This is unacceptable. We cannot stand by and let the world’s most vulnerable suffer due to this short-sighted, dangerous and cruel decision.
Will you join us in telling the government – reverse the cuts, protect women and girls?
Share your thoughts on the cuts with us and we'll take your messages directly to parliament at an event this week*, where we'll be meeting with MPs and decision-makers.
* Please note this event has now taken place - thank you so much for all your thoughts and comments which were shared at the event. Please feel free to share your comments with us and we'll continue to highlight your views with key decision-makers whenever we can.
What is happening to the UK aid budget?
This week the UK government announced plans to slash the UK aid budget. The same aid budget that was plundered by the previous government only a few years ago. If they go ahead, these cuts will be the largest cut to UK overseas aid in history and make the UK one of the lowest contributors to foreign assistance (by % of GNI) among our peers – a disastrous outcome, out of step with the generosity shown by the British public in the face of humanitarian disasters.
We are devastated by this decision, which could not have come at a worse time. Across the world we are seeing unprecedented cuts to foreign assistance – endangering some of the world's most marginalised women and putting the planet at risk.
The impact of the aid cuts: Faduz’s story
One day there will be no solution. One day there will be nothing left." - Faduz
Worst of all we know that women and girls will bear the brunt of this, as they do in every crisis. Be it conflict, climate change, famine – women are often the first to lose their rights, their health, their homes, their livelihoods. Ignored, exploited and excluded from decision-making, foreign assistance can be a lifeline for women battling their way out of crisis and toward a better future.
Women like Faduz, who lives with her five children in a camp for internally displaced people in Ainabo, Somaliland, along with 1,700 families - a total of 8,400 people. Due to the conflict only 30 kms away, three to four families arrive every single day, putting a strain on the already little resources available.
It’s been a year since Faduz and her 5 children came here, when they were forced to flee their home when conflict and gunfire broke out. “I only took my children. Once I had all five of them, I ran. My hands could not carry anything else, as I was holding the hands of my children,” she remembers.
When they reached the camp, she found relief in the kindness of others. Neighbours shared food. Clean drinking water was provided, but when the funding ran out, the water tank ran dry. Now this is the biggest struggle for her and her family’s survival. “Sometimes there is no water,” says Faduz. “I only wish for my children to survive. For them to have a better future.” But through it all, she clings to hope - hope that the world will not forget them, hope that the water will come, hope that her children will live to see a future beyond survival.
Behind every lost pound there is story like Faduz’s. A mother unable to provide food or water for her children. A young girl who needs protection from violence left to face increased risk. An earthquake victim without the means to rebuild their homes and livelihoods.
UK aid cuts: What you can do
We need the UK government to know that we won’t stand for this. They must not turn away from people who face danger every day. Women who need access to vital supplies now more than ever. Instead, we must safeguard UK aid. So that a woman can protect herself, her family, her community. To build a safer and better life.
Together our voice is stronger. Join us in telling the government – reverse the cuts, fund gender equality, protect women and girls.
This week, we'll be taking your messages directly to MPs and decision-makers at a parliamentary event.*
* Please note this event has now taken place - thank you so much for all your thoughts and comments which were shared at the event. Please feel free to share your comments with us and we'll continue to highlight your views with key decision-makers whenever we can.
