Britain will sharply scale back its bilateral aid programme, cutting support to nine African countries by more than 80% by 2029 as overseas development spending falls from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross national income.
Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia are among the countries facing the steepest reductions, while the UK’s bilateral assistance to Africa overall is set to drop by 56%.
Aid groups and lawmakers have strongly criticised the cuts, warning that they could weaken healthcare, education, humanitarian relief and climate resilience in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries. The government says it is redirecting resources towards partnerships and multilateral support in an effort to make development funding more effective.
