The Bureau of Foreign Alms and Relief is part of the Parliament of State.
| Bureau of Foreign Alms & Relief | |
|---|---|
| Bureau of the Parliament of State | |
| Employees | 4,260 |
| Established | 1969 |
| Headquarters | Commonwealth Alms House, Praia |
The Bureau of Foreign Alms & Relief is a bureau of the Parliament of State responsible for Commonwealth civilian aid and development financing. The Commonwealth’s universalist political traditions are preoccupied with international suffering and substantial resourcing has equipped its foreign aid programmes since the country’s founding in 1965. The Bureau consolidates these programmes into a single dedicated section, and helps coordinate sovereign bodies under Commonwealth shelter like the Common Navy and the International Levy for Atlantic Mercy.
Commonwealth alms and relief have certain characteristics, and run parallel to domestic programmes including the training of doctors and teachers through overseas exposure. They typically focus on development grants, technical guidance, scholarships and disaster relief. Like most Commonwealth bureaus, it retains substantial autonomy from Government, and so has developed an internal culture and programme that distinguishes it from aid efforts overseas. To this end, it can take on greater risk than typical international aid organisations, and also coordinate with other areas of government (including the Armed Forces to pursue its interests aggressively.
Department of Works Abroad
1,660Long-term aid works in recipient countries.
Department of Emergency Relief
1,100Civil relief after disasters abroad, apart from the Common Navy's operations at sea.
Department of Experts Abroad
840Posting of Vekllei technical officers to recipient countries.