Who are FCO's top development contractors?

The recent merger of the United Kingdom's Foreign & Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development has raised concerns and questions about transparency, funding, and multilateral relationships. While official FCO data can be found in sources such as Development Tracker, Contracts Finder, and Tenders Electronic Daily, among others, data gaps make it challenging to track who all of its contractors are. In 2019, DFID was the top U.K. department disbursing official development assistance at £11.1 billion, or more than 73% of the £15.1 billion in total U.K. ODA, while FCO — the agency that promotes global security and the United Kingdom's interests — came in third at £675 million, or 4.5% of total ODA, after the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. However, when adding ODA disbursed through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, or CSSF, and the Cross-Government Prosperity Fund — both mainly managed by FCO — it becomes the second-largest disburser, with £1.5 billion, or about 10% of total ODA. CSSF aims to strengthen global peace, security, and governance and to support work to reduce conflict in more than 84 countries. In 2019, CSSF spent £661 million, and the fund’s largest spender was FCO. Additionally, the Prosperity Fund spent £175 million of ODA in 2019. In general, the fund aims to promote economic reform and development growth in over 26 countries. This fund has 10 priority sectors, and the contractors below were awarded under the Ease of Doing Business Programme, Global Infrastructure Programme, and Global Better Health Programme. Top FCO development contractors Devex Analytics dug deeper into the existing FCO data to identify the top 10 major contractors in 2019. We chose to focus on development-related contract awards, which is why suppliers like GardaWorld and Travelhire — winning contracts for security services and the provision of conference facilities and a media center, respectively — were excluded from this list. Here are the major contractors ranked by funding awarded in 2019 and the major contracts awarded to them: 1. PricewaterhouseCoopers Pvt. Ltd. Headquarters: London Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 6 Total value of 2019 contracts: £25,000,882 In 2019, PwC was awarded the most funding for FCO development contractors, implementing five projects with a combined worth of £25 million — four of which are focused on India and one on Southeast Asia. Among these projects, two received the biggest allocation. The first is the Ease of Doing Business in India under the India Prosperity Fund program, in which PwC was awarded about £4.5 million and leads the program’s technical assistance. Second, the Global Better Health Programme in Southeast Asia — which deals with noncommunicable diseases, digital health initiatives, education and training, provider performance improvement, and life sciences initiatives — received over £20.2 million. 2. Mott MacDonald Headquarters: Croydon, England Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 2 Total value of 2019 contracts: £16,486,597 Mott MacDonald is a recipient of the Prosperity Fund’s Global Better Health Programme in South Africa, worth £13.9 million, along with the Global Infrastructure Programme BIM Phase 3, worth over £2.5 million, which aims to develop the capacity of Latin American, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and African regions to bridge infrastructure gaps through training and embedding proven U.K. methodologies in infrastructure planning and delivery. 3. McKinsey & Company United Kingdom Headquarters: London Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 1 Total value of 2019 contracts: £14,749,628 The health care systems and services industry is among McKinsey’s 20 priority industries. It works with private and public health care leaders to address health care challenges. McKinsey was awarded the Prosperity Fund’s Global Better Health Programme in Brazil, worth £14.7 million, which tackles the issues of illness and premature death due to noncommunicable diseases and aims to improve access to safe and quality health care. 4. DAI Europe Headquarters: Apsley, England Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 2 Total value of 2019 contracts: £12,808,153 DAI Europe was awarded two projects under CSSF and the Prosperity Fund. The first was for digital skill research services with the CSSF Western Balkans program, worth £43,578 and providing assistance to address the priority drivers of instability in the region by reducing the threat from extremism and terrorism, strengthening governance and the capability for rule of law, and supporting reconciliation. Additionally, it was awarded £12.7 million for the Global Better Health Programme in Mexico. 5. Coffey International Development Headquarters: Canberra Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 3 Total value of 2019 contracts: £7,954,831 Coffey International Development is a Tetra Tech company that is heavily involved in peace and security with FCO and was awarded three projects under CSSF in South Sudan, Sri Lanka, and Kenya in 2019. A project providing technical assistance for the peace process in South Sudan received almost 75% — £5.9 million — of all its 2019 contracts. It aims to strengthen political participation in the country, and the project runs until 2022. This is followed by an anti-bribery and corruption project in Sri Lanka worth £999,998, which also ends in 2022, and finally the Senior Leadership Development Programme for Kenya National Police Service, worth £955,000. 6. Ecorys UK Headquarters: London Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 1 Total value of contracts: £5,547,928 Ecorys is currently implementing monitoring, evaluation, and learning services for the Good Governance Fund — a project funded by FCO and DFID that aims to deliver governance and economic reform in Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The services provided by the consulting firm seek to provide effective, evidence-based program outputs and outcomes in support of countries' reform objectives. 7. Ernst & Young Headquarters: London Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 5 Total value of contracts: £4,737,204 Ernst & Young won several small contracts from FCO in 2019 for technical assistance on waste management and the circular economy, development of the pension ecosystem, and support for health care artificial intelligence and the infrastructure supply chain — all of them below £100,000. The biggest contract awarded to the firm by FCO was for a consultancy under the Brazil Green Finance Programme, worth about £4.5 million. The overall objective of the project is to boost investment in sustainable infrastructure to support Brazil's economic development by contributing to its low-carbon infrastructure transition and supporting the achievement of its nationally determined contributions. 8. WYG Headquarters: Leeds, England Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 1 Total value of contracts: £3,030,000 In 2019, WYG became a part of Tetra Tech — another leading consultancy provider. The consulting firm was awarded a monitoring, evaluation, and learning services contract for CSSF West Africa. The contract requires a review of existing processes and support in creating monitoring and evaluation tools. 9. The HALO Trust Headquarters: Dumfries, Scotland Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 2 Total value of contracts: £2,229,250 Through a contract worth £2 million, The HALO Trust — an NGO aiding countries in the aftermath of conflict — would support landmine and “explosive remnants of war” clearance and risk reduction in Sri Lanka. A second contract, worth more than £200,000, was for the removal of ammunition in Abkhazia, a region in the Southern Caucasus. Both contracts are under CSSF. Furthermore, HALO is the only nongovernmental organization on the list of major contractors of FCO. 10. Global Partners Governance Headquarters: London Number of FCO contracts in 2019: 3 Total value of contracts: £1,977,830 Global Partners Governance works closely with politicians and officials to help them identify and implement reforms. It has collaborated with a range of organizations and international donors, such as the Danish International Development Agency and United Nations Development Programme. In 2019, it was awarded £1.2 million for the Female Political Participation project in Lebanon, which aims to support the participation of female voices and leaders in political decision-making processes. It also received £300,000 to strengthen the representative function of Bahrain’s National Assembly. Both projects are under CSSF. For access to in-depth analysis, insights, and funding opportunities from over 850+ sources — combined with Devex Pro news content — sign up to a Pro Funding subscription online today or get in touch to learn about our Pro Funding group options.