Indonesia, Kenya and Ghana are to be removed from the list of 15 countries where the Netherlands concentrates its aid efforts in 2020, aid minister Lilianne Ploumen has told parliament.

Three countries will be added to the list to replace them. They are likely to come from the Sahel region in Africa, which lies between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanese savanna, the minister said in her briefing.

The government’s policy is to focus on countries closer to Europe’s borders .

Over the past six years, the number of countries which benefit from Dutch aid efforts has been cut from 33 to 15.

In seven – Afghanistan, Burundi, Jemen, Mali, Palestine, Rwanda and South Sudan – the focus is on tacking poverty and boosting stability. In the other eight – Bangladesh, Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Indonesia, Mozambique and Uganda – reducing poverty, and boosting jobs and private sector involvement are central.

Rwanda is to be moved from the category of poorest countries and will get more help with trade and investment, Ploumen said.