Actress Carey Mulligan has condemned the UK government for delaying a promised £500,000 funding payment to War Child, an international charity working to prevent child trafficking from Afghanistan. The government had agreed to match public donations from July this year, but now says the money will not be released until April 2022.
Mulligan, a patron of War Child, described the decision as 'damaging' and called for it to be reversed. 'The children at risk of abuse and exploitation need our support now not next year,' she told BBC Two's Newsnight. 'The government must keep their word to the public who donated so generously.'
War Child chief executive Rob Williams said the delay was 'a disaster' and 'a major breach of faith'. He warned that without the funding, the charity would be unable to prevent about 3,000 children from being trafficked into Iran over the next 12 months.
The UK Aid Match scheme allows the public to have a say in how aid is spent, with the government matching donations up to £2 million. War Child raised £500,000 from the public, which was to be used to reunite children with families and build support centres in Afghanistan.
Government sources said all affected charities have been given 'cast iron guarantees' that they will receive the money next year. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office stated that the pandemic had forced 'tough but necessary decisions', including a temporary reduction in aid spending, but that War Child's funding had been protected.
