In this review, the ICAI/Agulhas team looked at UK aid interventions designed to address irregular migration through the central Mediterranean route. It found that the UK portfolio on migration is some distance from having a measurable impact and there is a risk that some programmes supported by UK aid in the region could cause unintended harm to vulnerable migrants.
Some of the new initiatives, such as the Jobs Compact in Ethiopia which aims to create 30,000 jobs for refugees as part of much larger job creation for host communities, has the potential to be successful. On the other hand, in some cases existing aid programming in the broad field of economic development had been unhelpfully re-labelled as ‘migration-related’ when there was insufficient evidence about how it would impact migration, including work in the energy sector, the extractives industry and national financial governance.
The review will be discussed at the International Development Committee (IDC) in Parliament.
Media Coverage: The Telegraph, BBC news, Daily Mail, The Guardian, The Sun, The Times, AOL, Politics Home
Areas of Expertise
Aid policy
- Aid effectiveness
- Migration and other climate impacts
