The Department for International Development (DFID) is the UK government department with lead responsibility for international development. DFID’s aim is to reduce poverty in poorer countries, in particular, through achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).  

When we talk about international development we are referring to efforts by developed and developing countries to bring people out of poverty and reduce how much their country relies on overseas aid. Many different things can contribute to development which reduces poverty, such as settling conflicts, increasing trade, securing more and better aid, and improving health and education.

DFID operates under the International Development Act, which came into force in 2002, and establishes the legal basis for UK development assistance. The Secretary of State for International Development can provide development assistance for sustainable development and welfare, provided that he/she is satisfied that this assistance is likely to contribute to poverty reduction.

The Department works in partnership with developed and developing countries, and with international organisations, that are committed to reducing international poverty.

What are we doing to tackle poverty?

Aid works. DFID aid helps take 3 million people permanently out of poverty every year. Since 1997, the Department has helped:

• Ethiopia get 6 million more children into primary school, and over 1 million more in Mozambique
• Uganda abolish health user fees through budget support. Immunisation rates for children under-5 have risen from 41% to 83%
• Nepal reduce maternal mortality rates through support of safer motherhood programmes, covering about 3.5 million people
• Tanzania abolish primary school user fees - 9 out of 10 children are now enrolled in school (in 1999 it was less than 6 out of 10).

In 2006, the UK reported £6,770 million as official development assistance (ODA), making the UK the second largest OECD-DAC aid donor. UK ODA has risen from 0.26 per cent of gross national income (GNI) in 1997 to 0.51 per cent in 2006, placing the UK seventh out of the 22 DAC donors.

Just over half the UK's money goes directly to developing countries, which is known as bilateral aid. The rest - known as multilateral aid - is channelled through international organisations such as the European Union, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations.

Find out more about what we are doing to eradicate poverty on the Department for International Development website.

Millennium Development Goals

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are the main focus of DFID's work, as they have a crucial role to play in reducing poverty and encouraging development in the world's poorest countries. The 8 goals are:

• eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
• achieve primary education for all children
• pomote equal rights for women
• reduce child mortality
• improve healthcare for mothers and pregnant women
• halt the spread of killer diseases such as Aids and malaria
• protect the world's environment
• provide more and better aid, fairer trade and debt relief
  

The UK signed up to the 8 MDGs at the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000. Around 190 countries have since signed up to them, with the aim of reaching the targets set out by 2015.

You can find out about the UK's progress towards meeting the targets on the DFID website.

You might also be interested in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals website.

Examples of our work

DFID projects make a difference around the world. Some current examples include:

• helping people in Lesotho cultivate keyhole gardens to adjust to climate change
• providing safe water supplies and latrines in Ethiopia
• raising houses about the level of flood waters in Bangladesh

You can find examples of other projects in the Case Studies section of the DFID website.

Working in partnership

DFID works in partnership with a number of organisations who arecommitted to reaching the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. You can find information about these funding schemes on the DFID website.