The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has released its annual statistics detailing the countries in receipt of UK aid, with the country at the top being no surprise.
The figures show that the UK gave just over £15 billion in Official Development Assistance (ODA) to developing countries and multilateral organisations with the objective of promoting economic development and welfare.
The UK's unwavering support to Ukraine throughout its war with Russia saw the country receive £250 million in aid, a figure that is nearly £100 million less than it was given in the previous year.
Conflict and drought has seen Ethiopia rise to second in the list of recipients, driven largely by conflict in the country, widespread droughts in the north, and severe flooding in the south.
The region has also been blighted with outbreaks of cholera, measles and malaria with services pushed beyond breaking point due to the influx of refugees from neighbouring war-torn Sudan, which is 12th on the list itself.
The £164 million donated to the country contributes towards helping people in need of humanitarian assistance, increasing access to safe drinking water and building frameworks to help the country better deal with crises in the future.
Afghanistan came third in the list receiving £115 million in aid, a decrease of over 66 percent on the year before, signalling a shift in relations with the Taliban government that has taken back large swathes of the country since the withdrawal of coalition forces in 2021.
The remainder of the list was made up by war-torn countries, with Syria, Yemen, Somalia, and the increasingly volatile Nigeria making up the top 7.
Pakistan received £69 million whilst Brazil was the only South American country in the top 20, being given £62 million as the nation struggles with poverty and the impacts of climate change.
Bangladesh completed the top 10, with the UK giving £58 million in a year which has seen nationwide protests cause the prime minister Sheikh Hasina to flee the country.
A notable entrant into the list this year was West Bank & Gaza, where £42 million of direct aid was given to the region to help support humanitarian efforts.
South Sudan, Sudan, Kenya, Mozambique and St. Helena all received between £46-58 million each as they placed 11 to 15 while the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal, Zimbabwe and Turkey completed the top 20.
Not all of the money given is distributed by the UK, with £5 billion given to multilateral organisations to distribute in the countries they work in.
Organisations such as the International Development Association (IDA), Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and Green Climate Fund are better able to use their expertise and economies of scale to have a greater effect in the regions they operate, according to the FDCO.
The total spend on ODA represents just 0.58 percent of Gross National Income (GNI), the 9th biggest contributor behind countries such as Norway, Luxembourg, Ireland and Germany. Only 5 countries met the UN's target of donating 0.7 percent of GNI.
The new Labour government has pledged to meet the 0.7 percent target once the fiscal conditions allow it to do so.
A recent report on the argument for meeting the target said that doing so "gives the UK leadership and influence in the development sphere and beyond."
Arguing against the target, The Taxpayers' Alliance has argued the target encourages a focus on inputs over achievements.
In response to the release of the figures, Reform MP Rupert Lowe told Express.co.uk: "These figures today once again show how badly the Tories governed in office. They prioritised money for foreign aid over British people.
"It's blindingly obvious that Labour won't put an end to this scandal too, indeed it looks like it will only get worse."
