1.7 In the period between the publication of ICAI’s review to the follow-up of its recommendations, the FCDO India team has focused on supporting the G20 meeting held in Delhi in the autumn of 2023. [...] Recognising the importance of a strong theory of change to ensure a coherent and effective portfolio of programmes, ICAI recommends returning next year to revisit progress on developing the theory of change and assess evidence that it is being used in funding decisions. [...] 1.22 Furthermore, BII involvement in what the IDC chair described as “bizarre investments like cosmetics clinics” elicited concern in a hearing with the committee on 25 April 2023 both because of the lack of a poverty reduction rationale in these investments and because of the IDC’s ongoing concern about governance of intermediated funds.8 The IDC’s concern again related to a BII investment in Ind. [...] Following the hearing, BII provided further written evidence to the IDC stating that its investment in a cosmetic surgery clinic had been part of the restructuring of a larger healthcare portfolio and that “learnings from the investment have helped the refinement of BII’s fund investment strategy”.9 In June 2023, only two months after this evidence was given to the IDC, BII made its investment in. [...] The review found that the UK had been largely inactive in response to the closing of civic space in India and was not doing enough to build civil society coalitions and advocacy capacity in this area.
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