Budget 2010: DFID commits to make £150 million efficiency savings whilst keeping pledges to the world's poor

24 March 2010

Today the Department for International Development announces that it will deliver £150m of savings, as its departmental contribution towards £11bn savings that are being made across government.

The government will continue to keep its promises to the world's poorest people. It remains fully committed to the target of spending 0.7% of Gross National Income (GNI) on official development assistance (ODA) by 2013, as outlined in the draft Bill published in January.

The Budget has today reaffirmed the government's commitment to making £11bn of savings a year by 2012/13 from efficiency and streamlining the centre of Government. Departments are setting out their contributions to these savings.

The £11bn of savings will contribute to halving net borrowing and will protect frontline priorities. The savings will come following the work of the Operational Efficiency Programme and Putting the Frontline First: Smarter Government.

DFID will meet this target through a range of activities, including:

• streamlining back-office processes - for example by sharing services with other overseas departments;
• making significant savings in procurement by reducing the rates we pay, improving the value we achieve and procuring collaboratively;
• halving the amount spent on consultancy now that we have built up in-house skills, for example in finance, IT and procurement.

The savings will help ensure that every pound of taxpayers' money has more impact on reducing poverty.

The department is committed to delivering the significant savings necessary and is making real progress through ambitious efficiency and value for money plans.

Ends.

Notes to Editors

• PBR 2009 announced that £11bn savings would be delivered by 2012/13 from Operational Efficiency Review conclusions and from Putting the Frontline First: Smarter Government.
• Budget announces examples of how departments will deliver savings will come from £8bn Operational Efficiencies; £0.5bn reforms to Arms Length Bodies; over £0.65bn from reducing spend on marketing, communication and consultancy budgets; £0.5bn from reducing spend on IT programmes; £0.3bn from reducing spend on energy; and, £0.14bn from reducing spend on the senior civil service and reducing days lost to sickness.
• These savings will contribute towards reducing borrowing and protecting frontline priorities.
• Total ODA projections remain unchanged since the CSR and continue at £9.1bn for 2010/11