Meeting global challenges and making a difference - aligning international development policy with global goals: analysis of responses

Annex 4: Thematic focus, Q7a and Q7b closed questions

The Scottish Government's International Development Fund currently has eight thematic priorities: health; water and sanitation; education; governance and human rights; sustainable economic development; renewable energy; food security; and climate change.

The consultation asked which of the current themes are best suited to the partnership working approach taken by the Scottish Government and the specific priority countries the Scottish Government will work with (Q7a), and which are best connected to the Global Goals and most useful for the Scottish Government's future planning (Q7b).

Question 7a: Scottish Government supports a number of thematic priorities across all the current priority nations. In seeking to focus our efforts better, and connect better to the Global Goals, which of the current themes do you think are best suited to our partnership working approach, and the specific priority countries we will work with? [Health / Water and sanitation / Education / Governance and human rights / Sustainable economic development / Renewable energy / Food security / Climate change]

Question 7b: Scottish Government supports a number of thematic priorities across all the current priority nations. In seeking to focus our efforts better which of the current themes do you think best connect to the Global Goals?

Please select up to 5 themes that you consider most useful for our future planning, and tell us why. [Health / Water and sanitation / Education / Governance and human rights / Sustainable economic development / Renewable energy / Food security / Climate change]

Question 7a listed the current eight themes, and invited respondents to select those that are best suited to the Government's partnership working approach and the specific priority countries Scotland will work with. Respondents could select as many of the eight themes as they wanted, and space was provided for respondents to explain their answers.

Question 7b asked respondents to select up to five themes that they considered most useful for the Scottish Government's future planning of international development. However, the online survey form allowed respondents to tick more than five - up to seven - and some ticked all seven.

Both of these questions were very complex, and it was clear that respondents interpreted the questions in different ways. Thus, the findings to the closed questions for 7a and 7b (presented in the tables below) should be treated with caution.

Question 7a - quantitative findings

One hundred and three (103) respondents (69 organisations and 34 individuals) chose at least one of the themes listed at Question 7a. Twenty respondents selected all eight themes, and ten selected just one. Moreover, 19 respondents (17 organisations and 2 individuals) did not select any of the themes, but wrote comments in the space provided. This latter group generally stated in their comments that they thought all the themes were important.

Table A4.1 shows the number and proportion of respondents who ticked each of the eight themes. Education and health were selected most often. Around three-quarters of respondents chose these two themes.

Table A4.1: Q7a - Which of the current themes do you think are best suited to our partnership working approach, and the specific priority countries we will work with?

Percentages do not total 100% because respondents could choose more than one theme.

Organisational respondents generally selected more themes than individual respondents. Although a similar proportion of organisations and individuals chose education and health as priorities, a higher proportion of organisations chose all of the remaining six themes.

Question 7b - quantitative findings

Respondents were asked to select up to five themes that they considered most useful for the Scottish Government's future planning of international development. However, the online survey form allowed respondents to tick more than five - up to seven - and some ticked all seven.

Altogether 100 respondents (68 organisations and 32 individuals) selected at least one theme from the list provided. Thirty-four respondents selected all seven. In addition, 16 respondents wrote comments at Question 7b, but did not select any of the themes. Table A4.2 shows the number of respondents who selected each of the themes as one of their first five.

As with Question 7a, education and health were selected most often - both by organisations and by individuals. These two were followed by food security; water and sanitation; renewable energy; sustainable economic development and governance and human rights. Climate change was the theme least likely to be selected as one of the first five, either by organisations or by individuals.

Table A4.2: Q7b - Which of the current themes best connect to the Global Goals?

Percentages do not total 100% as respondents could select more than one theme.

The table displays only those themes that were selected as one of the first five in respondents' replies.