Development Initiatives

We’re off to the UK Party Conferences

The United Kingdom, through DFID, is an important donor to influence.  Not only is the UK a major donor in terms of aid volume, but it is also a respected leader in progressive aid policies and new ideas to support better aid delivery. 
DFID’s policy and direction is controlled by the Parliament of the day, currently led by Gordon Brown’s Labour government.  But Parliament is drawing to the end of its term, and a general election to elect a new Parliament must be held by no later than Thursday, 3 June 2010. 
Change is in the air.

Current polling suggests that there could be a new government in 2010.  And that could mean a change in the UK’s development policy – and a change in those who will be overseeing and influencing DFID’s future direction.
Thus, the upcoming 2009 UK Party Conferences present an important opportunity to make ourselves known to, and influence, those who will be the new masters of DFID.

Development Initiatives will be holding fringe events at all the 2009 UK Party Conferences – starting with the Liberal Democrats on September 22, followed by a fringe event at Labour Conference during lunchtime on September 29, and a final fringe at the Conservative Conference in the evening of 7 October.  These fringe events will be supported by stands at both the Labour and Conservative conferences.  We hope to see you there.

At Development Initiatives, we believe that to eliminate poverty, we need to do more than just create growth and opportunity. We must also recognise and deal with poverty’s multidimensional nature, and put an end to exclusion and exploitation.  And we need to acknowledge that addressing poverty is relevant in every country.

We also believe that an end to poverty involves building a global stop-poverty guarantee - and that underwriting this guarantee is the proper role of reformed aid.

This six-part guarantee involves continuing work to facilitate access to health services and education, ensure enough drinking water and adequate sanitation, and create opportunities for a minimum level of income. But this important work is not enough. To really end poverty, we need to add two more building blocks: making freedom from insecurity a reality, and supporting access to the transformative power of information.

Absolute poverty can be eliminated by 2025 by building a global stop-poverty guarantee:  addressing the local and international forces that push people into poverty and the traps that keep them poor.

Come and see us at the UK Party Conferences over the next three weeks!