Bond statement in response to the Syria pledging conference

In response to the fifth Brussels Conference: ‘Supporting the future of Syria and the region’, where the UK government have significantly cut aid to Syria, Simon Starling, Director of Policy, Advocacy and Research at Bond, the UK network for organisations working in international development, said:

“It’s hard to believe that the UK, the same country that co-hosted the first pledging conference for Syria 6 years ago, is now turning its back on the 13.4 million people that are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance and is cutting aid to Syria by a third. 12 million people, including women and children, no longer have access to food, hospitals continue to be shelled – the colossal need for help has gone up, not down. Cutting aid to Syria is a political choice and a decision that the British public would find unconscionable. It is not too late to reverse the decision to cut UK aid.”

The UK government announced it would provide at least £205 million in aid to Syria this year, down from £300 million pledged last year.

ENDS

Notes to editor

At the fifth Brussels Conference: ‘Supporting the future of Syria and the region’, the UK announced they will provide at least £205 million, down 32% from the £300 pledged in 2020.
Bond is the UK network for organisations working in international development. Bond unites and supports a diverse network of over 400 civil society organisations from across the UK, and allies to help eradicate global poverty, inequality and injustice.
For further information or interviews please contact Maryam Mohsin on 07555 336029 or [email protected]