Scotland and Africa
The next item of business is a statement by the First Minister on Scotland and Malawi. The First Minister will take questions at the end of his statement, so there should be no interventions.
Thank you for the opportunity to report the detail and outcome of my official visit to Malawi. I apologise to the leaders of the other parties for their late receipt of my statement in advance of this meeting of the Parliament.
In February, our devolved Government published a strategy on international development. Scotland's increasingly significant international profile means that we have responsibilities, in addition to the international development responsibilities of the United Kingdom Government.
For six years we have worked increasingly hard to promote Scotland internationally—in America, in Europe and in the far east. All those actions are designed to improve the lives of Scots here in Scotland, but there is a point at which all our efforts to promote Scotland, to attract fresh talent, to increase tourism and to promote business links are incomplete unless we participate in the worldwide effort to close the gulf between rich and developing countries. I believe that, to make poverty history, everyone must play a part in achieving the millennium development goals. Individuals, youngsters, businesses, communities and devolved Governments and Parliaments such as ours have a job to do. If we are not part of the solution in Africa and elsewhere, we exacerbate the problem.
So our international development strategy focuses on the powers of devolution and the practical things that this Government should do. I believe that there is a real desire in this chamber—a cross-party desire—to work together on international development. We are a relatively rich country with a moral duty to contribute to international development, and we should do so.
Before arriving in Malawi last week, I understood Scotland's history with Malawi—or at least I thought I did. I knew about the Scottish churches and their impact on daily lives, and I knew that many individual Scots had contributed to the country's development. As any youngster in Lanarkshire can tell you, Dr David Livingstone's legacy is present throughout Africa—but perhaps nowhere more so than in Malawi, where the only place names from the colonial past still remaining are Blantyre and Livingstonia.
The welcome that we received was deep and warm. There were many things that I was prepared for, but I did not expect the depth and warmth of the welcome that we received from people far below the level of Government ministers.
Scotland's links with the country are—by and large—proud ones. Throughout the 20th century, when ordinary Malawians were being oppressed, Scots spoke out for them. In the 1950s, when there were proposals to amalgamate what was then Nyasaland with the Rhodesias, it was Scots who spoke up against the proposals here in the United Kingdom. Presiding Officer, it is now time for Scots to raise their voices again. As one of the Government ministers in Malawi said to me last week, "Scotland has unfinished business."
My objectives for this visit were clear. I wanted to highlight the plight of Africa and the responsibility of rich nations to help in advance of the G8 summit in July; I wanted to explore how our international development policy could help Malawi in particular to meet the millennium development goals, especially in health, education and governance; and I wanted to support the activities of Scots and Scottish organisations already active in Malawi. Most of all, I went to listen to and learn from local people, their community leaders and their elected representatives.
I took inspiration and advice from the members of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association here who visited Malawi in February and produced such a helpful report. I learned much from the churches and non-governmental organisations too. However, I learned a great deal more by being there. I saw for myself Malawi's challenge in adapting to universal primary education; I saw the challenges facing teachers at Minga Community Day Secondary School; and I saw the enthusiasm for learning among pupils who walk up to 10km each day to school.
At Henry Henderson Primary School—built by Scots in 1909—I saw 1,200 children taught by 26 teachers in a school that is still without decent toilets. I saw too the special education facilities and training at Montfort College, for the teaching and support of deaf and blind children. I met the community in Linthipe, and I saw the care that Josephine Munthali's child support project—based in Glasgow—offers to children there. It gives them their only hot meal, keeping them alive. I saw in Nkhoma the support that the church gives to public services—training nurses and running a hospital.
I heard about the ambitious plans at the college of health sciences in Lilongwe to develop capacity and human resources by training nurses and other health professionals; and I saw at first hand the enormous challenges facing Lilongwe's main maternity services at Bottom hospital, where I met the two doctors who help 10,000 women to give birth each year. I heard about the maternal death rate—one of the highest in the world. I heard from Dr Walker from Simpson's here in Edinburgh that, in his eight years of obstetric experience in Scotland, he has never experienced a mother die in childbirth. In Bottom hospital, one mum dies every week. I also met Scottish midwives who are training local staff to deal with obstetric emergencies.
In each place that I visited, local people proudly told me of their achievements and their aspirations, but they face such great challenges: a labour ward without scissors or stitch packs; a health college without modern books or internet access; and primary schools without books, paper or pencils, never mind running water and electricity. Students are unable to reach the entrance requirements for university without a science qualification, but schools are unable to teach science because they have no equipment. Nurses go without basic vaccinations and so, throughout their careers, are at risk from hepatitis B and HIV. Too many little girls reach adulthood far too young, and mothers are unable to feed their children without help from a feeding station.
The enormity of the challenge and the scale of the problems must not prevent us from trying our best to help, so we announced immediate actions last week. First, a new training programme will extend the work that is being carried out by Dr Walker and his remarkable team. Ten Scottish doctors and midwives can train 100 Malawian medical staff and students in emergency obstetrics. We will also break down barriers to volunteering, as was recommended by the group of MSPs who visited Malawi in February. Initially, 10 Scots a year will get their superannuation costs paid while they are on a two-year Voluntary Service Overseas placement in Malawi. That is a first in the United Kingdom. Furthermore, to support Malawi in its drive to train more teachers, I can announce that Scotland's teacher training faculties, whose deans I met yesterday, will identify options to develop education.
Other Scots are also doing brilliant work out there. The Strathclyde partnership is distributing 32,000 school books in Malawi. It has already provided computers that can talk to visually impaired children at Montfort College. Scottish International Relief is feeding 23,000 Malawian children through its Mary's meals project. The Church of Scotland continues the work that it started all those years ago by supporting communities, schools and health care.
Complementing my programme, I was able to meet a number of members of the Malawian Government. I met the President, who was elected last year. I also met the Vice-President, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Information and Tourism, the Deputy Minister of Health and the Deputy Minister of Education and Human Resources. The meetings were useful and businesslike. The President expressed, publicly and privately, his strong political will to root out corruption. He spoke of a zero-tolerance approach to corruption and he described his personal effort to ensure that his Administration is marked by transparency and accountability.
All in all, over the past 150 years, Scottish efforts in Malawi have been remarkable and I believe that the Malawian Government is determined to do its best in difficult circumstances. However, despite the efforts of many, Malawi has not progressed. Five years ago, life expectancy in Malawi was 42 years; today, it is 37. In other words, none of the efforts has been enough. In many respects, the country is going backwards.
I believe that now is the time to step up a gear. We need to pull together as a nation in a national effort to change more lives in a part of Africa that has been friends with Scotland for a long, long time. We will continue to support and recognise all the other efforts by Scots in other developing countries but, to make maximum impact, our devolved Government's energy and leadership will focus attention on Malawi.
First and foremost, we must find an easy way for generous, caring Scots to respond to the images that they have seen, the articles that they have read and the news reports that they have watched as a result of the visit. Today, I can announce the establishment of a fund and telephone contact centre that will be run by the Scottish Community Foundation. I make it clear that the fund will not be part of Government and will have no direct relationship to ministers or politicians. It will add value to the existing appeals and charities in Scotland. When individuals or groups want to donate directly, it will be made as easy as possible to do that. Scots are generous—they have already risen to the challenge in supporting the renewal of Bottom hospital and other projects—and their donations make a difference. That difference can be even greater if our efforts in Government work hand in hand with those of the national fund and the many others who work in Malawi.
I can also announce today the establishment of a Scotland-Malawi steering group. The group will be led by Patricia Ferguson. In recognition of the enormous contribution that the Scotland-Malawi partnership is already making, I have asked that partnership to provide the vice-chair for the group. The remit of the group will be to co-ordinate activity, draw up an immediate set of actions and oversee their delivery. There will be close liaison with MSPs who are already involved, including the CPA executive committee.
The steering group will consider further how the Scottish Government and professionals in Scotland can help to build greater capacity in the Malawian health and education systems and how, in particular, we can support the women who lead development in local communities. We will encourage schools, colleges and others to link with their Malawian counterparts. We can and should find direct ways to help.
The President has accepted my invitation to him to come to Scotland in November, when he will address the Scotland-Malawi partnership conference. In the meantime, our two Governments will work together to establish priority areas for development and co-operation and to draw up a Government-to-Government action plan in time for the President's visit.
The President has identified economic growth as his top priority. We will discuss how our experience in enterprise education in particular and in supporting businesses more generally can help. We will also consider how our tourism industry can advise those in Malawi who seek to promote the country as a tourist destination—and what a fantastic destination it would be. Patricia Ferguson will visit Malawi next spring. Her visit will include discussions with the Malawian Minister for Information and Tourism, who might also lead a delegation to Scotland.
I thank all those who helped to organise the visit last week, and all those in Malawi who made all of us so welcome. In particular, I thank everyone who helped with the Scottish schools Africa challenge. Last week, five children from Sanday Community School in Orkney accompanied me to Malawi and spent a week with five children from Minga Community Day Secondary School.
In the words of the children from Sanday Community School, their experience was "life changing" and "inspiring"—they said that their "eyes were opened." I know that those youngsters will grow up into adults who have open minds and broad horizons. I also know that the connection between Scots and Malawians will make Scotland a better place. We are a small, devolved country, looking to focus on a small part of Africa. We can help, and we can make a difference.
Ultimately, however, that will not be enough. In the end, the actions and decisions of the leaders of the world's richest and most powerful countries will make a lasting difference for Africans. That is why the G8 summit, on Scottish soil next month, is so critical. If Scotland can do this much, then surely the G8 leaders can back the British Prime Minister and deliver more aid, cancel debt and create trade rules that stop punishing the weakest economies. We will do our bit; now they must do theirs.
The First Minister will now take questions on his statement. I will allow around 20 minutes for the process.
I commend the First Minister for his visit to Malawi and for his clear personal commitment to encouraging all of us to do what we can to help to tackle poverty in Africa. I offer him my full and unreserved support for all the initiatives that he has announced today.
I also agree with the First Minister's closing remarks that, although we can—and we should—do so much, those with the power to make a real difference to millions of lives in Africa are the G8 leaders who will meet in Gleneagles next month. Is the First Minister aware that, if just the UK was to meet the United Nations target for international aid, an estimated 1.5 million people could be lifted out of poverty every single year? In the light of that, does he share the concern that, although, as he said, there are moves afoot to increase international aid, no single G8 country is currently committed to meeting the UN target before 2012, even though the target has been in place for 35 years?
Will the First Minister use his experiences and influence to urge the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer to follow the example of small nations such as Norway, which already exceeds the target, by committing the UK to meeting the target well before the end of this decade?
I thank Nicola Sturgeon very much for her support and, I assume, that of the Scottish National Party for the initiatives that I have outlined. I hope that that is the way in which we can proceed with this work.
The decisions that the British Government has made, first to double international aid since 1997 and, more recently, to commit to the 0.7 per cent target by 2012, are welcome. The Government should keep that target date under constant review to determine whether it can bring it forward. It should also, as I believe that it is doing, maximise the pressure on the other G8 nations to set a clear target date and not only hit it, but keep it under review to determine whether they can bring it forward. I see no reason why countries in the rich, developed world cannot hit the target much earlier than most of them plan to do and we should all continue to alert Governments to the priority that we want them to attach to that.
I commend the First Minister for his interest in the matter. I am sure that we all agree that the objective of making poverty history is commendable and recognise the strong historical links between Scotland and Malawi. However, I am sure that the First Minister is also aware that many people are concerned that his Scottish Executive initiative might cut across the efforts of Her Majesty's Government, to which aid and development are properly reserved. Should it not be up to the Government of the United Kingdom to decide on our international aid priorities in tandem with other Governments and international agencies, rather than up to the Scottish Executive?
The First Minister referred in his statement to governance, which is important. Does he agree with me that good governance is vital to economic development and that success stories in Africa, such as Botswana, are countries that have functioning democracies? Did he follow the advice that Sir Bob Geldof gave in the chamber only a few weeks ago and press the Government of Malawi to reform its political structures to eliminate corruption? Can ordinary people in Scotland be assured that their donations to the fund that he mentioned will help the ordinary people of Malawi and will not end up lining the pockets of corrupt politicians and officials?
Although public demonstrations of concern about world poverty are laudable, does the First Minister agree that such demonstrations must be properly organised in conjunction with the police and other relevant authorities and that we simply cannot have 1 million people turning up on the streets of Edinburgh without proper arrangements being made in advance? To that end, will the First Minister advise the Parliament what is being done in relation to the demonstration that has been called for 6 July?
I am happy to provide reassurance on all three issues and hope that we can build on the cross-party consensus that was developed during the visit in February. To his credit, Ted Brocklebank has been very much part of that and I hope that Mr McLetchie will join us in that effort if I am able to provide him with the reassurance that he has requested.
First, we worked closely with the Department for International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in preparing the official visit to Malawi and executing the different visits in the programme last week. It is clear that not only the UK Government but the other major donor Governments of the world have a major responsibility to work closely with the Governments of Malawi and other countries to implement aid programmes that have maximum impact. However, those donor countries also recognise that there is a role for different levels of Government and different agencies and that, when different levels of Government and other agencies get involved, complementing the donor countries' national programmes or working on the ground with individual projects, they can make an impact. That is why the UK Government has encouraged us at every stage in the work that we have undertaken. It is also why the Government will continue to support us and we will continue to work closely with it.
On governance, I think that I said in my statement that I take the new President of Malawi at his word. He talks of a zero-tolerance approach to corruption and, significantly, has already acted to sack individual politicians and civil servants whom he believes to be guilty of corruption. His anti-corruption operation is currently pursuing individuals who will be properly tried in the courts of Malawi. Malawi has a democratic system. It is alleged that it might, in the eyes of some, have been abused in the past, but a democracy and a legal system are in place there. The Government of Malawi should use that system properly and, when it does that, it will have our full support.
I will come back to the question on donations in a second, because I will answer the point about demonstrations first. I am in no doubt that, as I said in the Parliament perhaps a few weeks ago, we have one of the best police forces in the world. I believe that our police force and our other agencies will be very well prepared for whatever happens here in Scotland in the first 10 days of July. It is absolutely critical that any demonstration is peaceful and respectful, not least of those in Africa who are starving or dying, as they are the people whom this is meant to be all about. Whatever the numbers are, I want any organisers to work closely with the authorities here, and my office is assisting with that. I want those who come to Scotland and those in Scotland who choose to make their voices heard to do so respectfully and peacefully. I am sure that that call will be echoed by all parties in the chamber.
I have seen with my own eyes the impact that donations make. I have seen youngsters who would otherwise be dead being fed by money that has been donated here in Scotland. Anybody who donates to Scottish International Relief, to the Child Support Project, to the many other funds that have already been established or to the fund that we will now use to co-ordinate and add value to the efforts that are being made can be absolutely assured that their money will find its way to individual projects, which will directly benefit the citizens and families of Malawi. People should be in no doubt about that. I hope that, from today, people will respond to that call.
I ask for shorter questions and answers from now on, please.
I have a particular interest in the part of the world that we are discussing, as I was born in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, in what is now Zambia. I congratulate the First Minister on going to Malawi and seeing for himself what the problems are.
As part of the delegation that recently visited Malawi, I point out that we did not promise anybody anything. As a result of my visit, I, together with others, have set up a charitable trust to assist one maternity unit, at Bottom hospital, to which the First Minister referred. Should I be attacked and condemned by others for concentrating on only one cause? Some of us, as individuals or as members of a group, cannot do everything. Some would suggest that we do nothing.
You must ask a question.
Does the First Minister agree that it is better for us all to help in whatever way we can than to do nothing, as some have suggested we should do?
On corruption, what measures can we take here in Scotland to ensure that the aid gets to those who need it and does not fall into the hands of corrupt officials?
The key thing is to identify individual specific appeals—such as the one with which Mike Pringle is associated or those run by charities that have been raising money for some time, and which are organised on the ground—and to identify clearly the money that has been allocated for specific projects or purposes. All the organisations involved have clear audit trails, and the money goes straight to the local projects. That is what we want to encourage. Any national co-ordination of that will have exactly the same aims and objectives.
On whether we should or could do nothing, questions have been raised, first, about our decision to become involved in this whole area and, secondly, about our decision to concentrate on Malawi. I hope that I have answered the point about our becoming involved. The Secretary of State for International Development, Hilary Benn, has said in this very chamber that he believes that there is more than enough work to go round. Any of us who have been to Africa can see that that is indeed the case.
On the second point, we in Scotland should focus our efforts. We should not enter this business in a tokenistic way or in a way that involves spreading our efforts too thinly for us to have any impact. By concentrating on Malawi, an old friend of Scotland with a 150-year-old connection to us and one of the poorest countries in the world, with what is probably the worst ill health in the world, we have an opportunity to build on a friendship that already exists and to focus our attention and efforts. That does not mean taking away from anybody else's work, replacing it or running it down; rather, it means leading it with one particular effort, which I think can make a real difference. I believe that that should command the support of people in all political parties, in all Houses of Parliament and at all levels of Government. I intend to do all that I can to make this an all-party effort and to make it work.
I indicate in the strongest possible terms our support for the initiatives that the First Minister has outlined, particularly the focus on one country and its education, health and women. The First Minister is to be congratulated on his visit; it is clear to me, and I hope to everybody else in the chamber, that very positive results will stem from it.
There are many questions to ask, but I want to ask about education. The First Minister has indicated that the fund will in no way be directed by politicians. However, will there be a commitment to development of sustainability education and eco-schools? The First Minister saw for himself in Johannesburg the benefits that can be gained from that. How will the fund administration relate to Scottish charities?
I thank Robin Harper for his comments. The fund will relate to Scottish charities by co-ordinating and pulling together the efforts that already exist. It will add value to them and provide a single national focus for people who want to contribute but are not sure where best to direct that contribution. If the Presiding Officer will allow me to mention it, the number 0845 848 9804 was launched this afternoon. The lines are now open, as they say on fundraising appeal programmes. That number will allow people to make a donation from anywhere and will focus on priority projects.
I share Robin Harper's passion for teaching and education. To visit schools to which young children walk 10km a day to sit on stone floors with no papers and pencils, where the teacher has no desk and where there is no running water or electricity puts the importance of education into perspective. It would be worthless for those youngsters to get books without getting pencils. Their getting books and pencils but no science equipment would mean that they still could not go to university, yet they are doing quadratic equations in their heads in order to learn the skills that youngsters in this country sometimes take for granted and sometimes resent.
We can do so much with so little resource. I visited a school in a village where I was shown straw huts the size of the centre of this chamber in which the children learn, 60 to a room. The children learn in those huts because the eight classrooms that were built eight years ago still do not have roofs, which could be built for a paltry sum in this country, never mind in that country. I intend to ensure that they get them at some point in the next 12 months.
Does the First Minister accept that although millions of Scots will give generously to the people of Malawi and other African countries, the wealth and resources of those countries are sucked out of them daily by the merchant banks and multinational companies? Does he accept that the culprit is the free-trade ideology? Will he support those countries' rights and throw the weight of Parliament behind the countries that want to protect their economies, industries and services from foreign domination, privatisation and the policies of the World Bank?
As I said in my statement, there are serious issues about trade unions and regulations, their impact on developing countries and the way they hold back the economies of those countries—I refer not least to some of the rules that exist in Europe in our agricultural policies. There are big issues for us in Europe as well as issues for multinational companies and the United States of America. We all have some responsibility. If we are going to do this right, in the long term we will all have to give up a little to ensure that others can prosper. That would be a good thing for all of us as well as for them. Much good work is done by the World Bank and other international institutions, but the problem is that it what is done is not yet enough. I hope that the world leaders' meeting at the G8 summit in Scotland next month will ensure that they build on the good work that exists and that they change that which holds back countries in Africa and elsewhere.
Does the First Minister agree that the question for us is not whether we can make a difference but how best we can do so? Will he confirm that the key objective is to ensure sustainability for organisations here in Scotland and in Malawi and elsewhere in Africa that we are assisting beyond the initial three-year timeframe?
We need to give an initial commitment, but we need to be in this for the long term. We cannot stick a toe in the water and then walk away. The sustainability of the individual projects, of the public services and—I agree with Malawi's President on this—of a growing economy in Malawi will be absolutely central to the long-term success of the country. The President said that Malawi has poor people but is not a poor country. It might not have the gold and other minerals that are mined across southern Africa and which make other countries much richer, but it has fantastic natural resources and fantastic people who have hope and spirit and who want their lives to go somewhere. If we are in this for the long term, we can help them to get there.
I join in welcoming the First Minister's statement. On behalf of the CPA delegation and executive, I thank the First Minister for his kind remarks about our efforts. I assure him and Patricia Ferguson that we are all more than willing to work in a constructive and continuing way with regard to the international development strategy.
On sustainability, our long-term aim is to enable people in Malawi to develop the skills that will enable them to grow their own economy; it is not a question of our going in and walking away. We saw the enthusiasm of the youngsters in the schools and recognised how desperately keen they are to learn.
Does the First Minister intend to roll out the superannuation guarantee to other aspects of the public services, such as education, the police services, the fire brigades and so on?
On the superannuation guarantee, the 10 people who are being supported are very much an initial number on which we can build. We need to discuss with colleagues in local government whether they would be prepared to support us in that effort, but I am sure that there is willingness on our side to build on the initial pilot scheme of 10 places.
Margaret Ewing talked about the capacity of training and expertise in Malawi, which is absolutely central. That is why we need to talk to our teacher training colleges rather than just to our teachers who might want to volunteer. We need to help Malawi to build its training capacity. That requires a variety of professional expertise. Many of the things that we do in Scotland, not least distance learning, could be adapted for use in Malawi in a way that would be extremely helpful in relation to building public services.
We can use that expertise, but we must also consider the fundraising aspects; the two elements go hand in hand. We can help to train nurses in Malawi, but if they are not vaccinated against hepatitis B and face the threat of contracting that disease from the day on which they enter training, that is a problem. However, it is a problem that is not hard to tackle with a small amount of money. Similarly, we can train teachers in Malawi but, if they do not have access to the internet and the knowledge that that brings, the way in which they can help youngsters to compete in the modern world will be limited. Fundraising goes hand in hand with training and expertise, but everything that we do should be about building Malawi's capacity to sustain its public services and economy.
I wish the First Minister well in his attempts to help one of the poorest countries in the world. Will the First Minister ignore his critics—including some ill-informed journalists and Westminster MPs—who allege that the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Executive are interfering in matters that are none of our business? Does the First Minister agree that we can complement the good work of the Department for International Development? That fact was apparently recognised by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for International Development, who gave evidence on the subject to the European and External Relations Committee and gave an inspiring address in this chamber about the importance of international development, which is the business of everyone in the international community.
I am determined to build a broad coalition and to ensure that we have as much consensus and concerted action as possible. I have therefore resisted the temptation to respond to the few remarks to which Mr Canavan refers, which have been made during the past seven days. I think that that is the right approach.
However, I will make one point that I think Dennis Canavan will, as a former member of the Westminster Parliament, understand absolutely. If, in the days before devolution, the Department for International Development had approached the old Scottish Office and asked it to assist in giving help with education and health in Malawi, nobody would have questioned whether the Scottish Office could perform that function. There is absolutely no reason why the Scottish Parliament and Scotland's devolved Government cannot play their small, humble part as part of the national effort and international action. When we do so, we have the support of the vast majority of people in Scotland.
I will allow two final quick questions and answers.
I pick up on the First Minister's comments about developing the capacity of women and young girls in Malawi. In what practical ways can that best be done? By building those women and young girls and developing their management skills in their communities we can best serve the people of Malawi.
Like anyone who has visited African communities, I was struck by the incredible power, strength and resilience of the women who ensure that not only their children but children who have been orphaned and so on are fed and are encouraged in their education, their health and their other development. Our Parliament, given its proud record of interest in and representation of women, can play a particular role in supporting those initiatives. The Presiding Officer has raised the matter on many occasions and I support his comments. We can play a particular role in supporting the women politicians and community leaders in Malawi; women MSPs might be willing to develop that partnership.
Further to Karen Gillon's point about the importance of empowering women, does the First Minister agree that it is important to enable women to give their communities the services that they need? Those services should be defined by the communities themselves rather than be imposed from outside.
Have there been any discussions about DFID giving added-value funding to the seedcorn projects that the Scottish Executive will fund through the development fund that has been agreed?
We will continue to work closely with DFID, and where appropriate we will combine our efforts. On other occasions, we will complement its work by working individually or supporting Scottish projects that are working separately.
To impose solutions is the worst thing that we could do. In an interview last week, a reporter asked me whether it would not be better for me to be sitting in Edinburgh. He said that the answers are obvious, that I should not have gone to Malawi and that it would have been better for me to spend time here mobilising support for what we are doing. However, there is nothing better than learning with one's own eyes and ears what people need and want. Last week, like the MSPs who visited Malawi in February and saw so much, I was able to listen and learn. That was the key objective of the visit and I hope that the lessons that we took from it can now be spread across Scotland so that we can galvanise support and make a difference to a country that is an old friend.
With us during the statement and questions has been His Excellency Mel Cappe, the Canadian High Commissioner to the UK, to whom we extend a warm welcome.