There is no agreed global list of conflict affected fragile states, nor fragile states. We do have a list of ‘fragile states’ which we are reviewing, as countries frequently move in and out of fragility and conflict, and political circumstances in a country can rapidly change. DFID defines fragile states as those where the government cannot or will not deliver its core functions—the delivery of basic services, provision of safety and security, capable management of public resources, and control over its own territory. DFID's list of fragile states is based on the countries in the bottom quintiles of the World Bank's country policy and institutional assessments from 1999-2003. Detail on DFID's current definition and list of fragile states can be found in DFID's policy paper, “Why We Need to Work More Effectively in Fragile States”, page 7 and annexe 1, which is available in the House of Commons Library.
DFID's commitment to work more in fragile states is clearly stated in the 2006 White Paper. The UK has also announced its intention to provide £8.5 billion over the next 10 years to support education and this will include support for fragile states. This long term commitment will support the development and implementation of education sector plans aimed at meeting the education goals including in fragile states.
DFID's bilateral programmes are already supporting education in fragile states. For example, in Afghanistan some 40 per cent. or £15 million of our support to reconstruction went to education last year. In addition, through the Education for All Fast Track Initiative's (FTI) Education Programme Development Fund (EPDF) there is the capability to support fragile states to get them on-track with education sector plans. The FTI is now piloting capacity building support for Haiti, Liberia, Somalia and Burundi through the EPDF. The UK-led FTI fragile states task team has been created to examine how the FTI can increase its support for fragile states.