The British government has confirmed dramatic reductions to its overseas aid programme, with nine African countries set to lose more than 80% of direct bilateral assistance by 2029. Overall UK aid to Africa is projected to fall by 56%, with bilateral funding dropping from £1.6 billion to less than £700 million. The cuts follow a government decision to reduce overseas development spending from 0.5% to 0.3% of Gross National Income — a move designed in part to free up resources for increased defence expenditure.
The countries facing the steepest reductions include Kenya, which will see a 93% cut in bilateral aid, and Malawi and Mozambique, both of which face 90% reductions. Rwanda and Sierra Leone are set to lose 80% of direct UK support, while Somalia faces a 49% cut. Even countries in active humanitarian crisis are affected: UK aid to the Democratic Republic of the Congo — a vast Central African nation currently battling one of its largest Ebola outbreaks on record — will fall by 29%. Funding for the world's least-developed countries is expected to nearly halve over the next four years.
Development organisations have condemned the scale of the reductions. Bond, the umbrella group for UK development charities, warned that cutting support to countries like Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Uganda risks "abandoning communities on the frontlines of conflict and the climate crisis." Save the Children cautioned that the cuts send a damaging signal about Britain's role on the international stage. The announcement also prompted the resignation last year of Anneliese Dodds as development minister.
The government has defended the changes, arguing that bilateral grants will give way to more targeted support delivered through multilateral institutions such as the World Bank, which ministers describe as a more efficient use of constrained resources. Development Minister Jenny Chapman acknowledged the scale of global challenges but said the aim is to "make every pound of UK development spending work harder."
Why this matters: Britain was long regarded as a leading donor nation, having previously committed to spending 0.7% of national income on overseas aid — a target it has since moved away from. The latest cuts mark a significant shift in that tradition, and come as the UK prepares to chair the G20, the global economic coordinating body, next year. Development advocates are now urging the government to use that platform to champion reforms addressing poverty and inequality, and some MPs have called for a roadmap back towards the 0.7% spending target.