Aid spending in Africa is due to fall.Deep cuts to the UK’s foreign aid budget will lead to more poor people dying, the government has admitted.Women, children and people with disabilities are set to suffer most as a result of the controversial policy, according to a Foreign Office assessment.Keir Starmer announced in February that he was slashing the amount the government spends on overseas aid from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) – around £6 billion – in order to boost the defence budget.“That is not an announcement I am happy to make,” the prime minister said. “I am proud of our record on overseas development.“At times like these the defence and security of the British people must always come first – that is the number one priority of this government.”But in its impact assessment of the aid cuts, the government said: “Any reductions to health spending risk an increase in disease burden and ultimately in deaths, impacting in particular those living in poverty, women, children and people with disabilities.”Spending on education, gender and equality projects will fall by £200 million between 2025 and 2026, the government said, with cuts of £186m to girls’ education funding.The government admitted that the closure of a gir