Dr. Breandán Ó Caoimh:

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. I dtús báire ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil leatsa, leis an Seanadóir agus le baill an chomhcoiste as ucht na fáilte a cuireadh romham anseo inniu. Cuirim fáilte freisin roimh an bproifíl a chuir AIRO le chéile agus a sheol an Seanadóir ag an Oireachtas anuraidh.

There is no doubt the figures contained in the AIRO report are indeed very stark. They present us with two choices. We can either ignore the people behind those figures and simply let the market take its course, or we can focus on the people behind the figures, work with them and their communities and target investment, so that Gaeltacht areas can realise their full potential. If these were urban areas, I think we know the course of action that would be taken. If we were to run with the former option, we would be turning our backs on communities and letting them die, and with them our very valuable cultural resources. Taking the latter option of investment will not deliver instant results but will yield benefits in time. Rural areas in general are under pressure. While much of the narrative about rural places is very negative, things do not have to be like that. There are several examples from across the European Union and beyond of rural regions and territories that have turned the corner. Indeed, the dominant message coming from the international literature and international practice is that with due investment, rural areas have a key role to play in the economic and social development of Ireland and Europe.

I want to take the opportunity to share an example of a Gaeltacht community that is turning the tide. Three years ago, the Gaeltacht community in Uíbh Ráthaigh undertook a profile of their locality. It was similar to the profile AIRO undertook. The figures were not entirely surprising. They confirmed what local people knew and the hunches they had. The study drew attention to the micro-geographies that Senator Ó Céidigh referred to, the differences with the Gaeltacht and the differences between Uíbh Ráthach and Corca Dhuibhne. It also had the advantage of getting people to sit up, take notice and realise that things had to be done. Instead of being negative or complacent about the state of things, the local chomhcoiste began to work on a strategy and to engage with South Kerry Development Partnership and Údarás na Gaeltachta to take positive action. The result was that Údarás na Gaeltachta convened a multi-agency task force. I am honoured to be a member of that task force. Over the past year and a half, we have worked to compile an integrated three-year action plan for Gaeltacht Uíbh Ráthaigh. The process has been characterised by positivity and partnership.

The context is that, having observed worrying trends of Irish language decline and population decline in the Gaeltacht, the local community had identified and articulated the need for collective action. It presented that to the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Kyne, and to others at Éigse na Brídeoige 2018. Dr. Mac Cormaic was at the Éigse this year when we looked at the follow-up, action and implementation of that. I welcome the Department's contributions to enabling the steps to be taken forward. The area profile, which I co-authored with Shane O’Sullivan from Limerick Institute of Technology, brought to light and clearly quantified many of the measures of decline in the Gaeltacht. At the same time, we identified the need for strategic investments and proper interventions. From the outset, the planning process was characterised by collaboration. That collaboration involved local government, State agencies, local development bodies, the private sector and, of course, community and voluntary organisations. It was also recognised that while the focus was on the Uíbh Ráthach Gaeltacht, we had to look at those conditions in the wider sub-county area that were contributing to population decline as well as those that could give rise to solutions. It was agreed also that the approach should reflect the Action Plan for Rural Development and align with Government policy. It is very clear from the layout of the plan how our pillars match up with the pillars in the rural development plan. Each goal has a series of objectives and under each objective, we have specific targets and indicators. All of the agencies such as local government agencies, the State sector and so on, have signed up to deliver on the specific actions. It is not just a wish list; these are now embedded in the work programmes of the different agencies and they have committed to following through on them.

The report will be formally launched shortly and the Department, the chomhcoiste and Údarás na Gaeltachta are working to that end. The plan, which is both area-based and people-centred, gives effect to several aspects of national policy in respect of spatial planning and sustainable development. It also dovetails with national policy objectives on the promotion of the Irish language and the development of Gaeltacht communities. In addition to pursuing local delivery of national objectives and public goods, this plan reflects best international practice. The processes through which it was devised and the deliverables it advances reflect the strategic approaches recommended by international bodies such as the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD, and the European Spatial Planning Observation Network, ESPON, among others. Moreover, the model that has emerged in Gaeltacht Uíbh Ráthaigh over recent months, and the outline and content of this plan, represent templates that have the potential to be transferred and adapted for other geographies. They offer a solution to many of the issues that are presented in the AIRO report. The Uíbh Ráthach plan also acknowledges that a one-size-fits-all approach does not work, and that bespoke and tailored interventions are required in line with local conditions and potential. In presenting how its objectives will be operationalised, the plan lists the agencies that will be involved in the delivery of each action. The regional manager of Údarás na Gaeltachta has played an important role in enabling the agencies to come together and in ensuring their commitment to the delivery of agreed actions.

Much of the literature and narrative on rural development has tended to focus on the problems. We need to take stock. While this literature has generally been frank and realistic, it has done little by way of engendering solutions or inspiring confidence. Such negativity may well have undermined confidence in the ability of rural areas to attract investment. Therefore, instead of talking down rural Ireland, it is important, while acknowledging the challenges, to accentuate the positive and to specify how investments will enable places to realise their potential. In 2013, the OECD published an extensive report on the performance of regions across 35 countries. The report was entitled All Places have Potential and it demonstrated that when investment strategies are pursued, rather than subsidies, rural areas outperform urban areas in terms of medium and long-term growth. This significant body of evidence shows the significant merits of public investment in rural areas. That body of evidence has grown in recent years and was very much to the fore in the recent OECD conference that took place in Edinburgh. At that conference, the OECD demonstrated that "while rural regions are individually small in terms of their level of regional gross domestic product (GDP), mobilising their growth potential can make a significant cumulative contribution to national GDP." The OECD’s thesis, which is based on experiences from across several countries, is in concert with an earlier publication from Ireland, New Approaches to Rural Development, produced by the National Economic and Social Council, NESC, which had strongly advocated integrated, multi-sectoral and collaborative approaches, including more significant investment in the LEADER model. Unfortunately, despite exceeding its targets nationally and locally, in the programme period to 2014, the LEADER budget has been dramatically cut due to reduced Government co-funding in the context of significant economic challenges.

It is now evident that the LEADER funds need to be restored to their previous levels and that LEADER organisations need to revert to being independent partnerships, not subcommittees of county councils. Throughout south Kerry, but in Uíbh Ráthach in particular, the community and voluntary sector has the demonstrable capacity to act as a key strategic partner in the planning and delivery of development. A report which I produced in 2015 also provides data on the capacity of civil society, namely, community and voluntary groups. These are very adept and experienced in service delivery and mobilising citizens, and they need to be part of the follow-up to today's conversation. That rural vibrancy study also provides very clear pointers on the most appropriate development trajectories locally.

Work in Uíbh Ráthach is ongoing. I am not here to say that it offers a magic bullet. I can say with conviction, however, and based on evidence that it represents a positive and a strategic response to the realities presented in the AIRO report. I expect that other Gaeltacht areas will respond in their own ways. It is essential that policymakers and State bodies allow them to respond, support them and enable innovation. Our engagement should be on their terms. We know from international experience that rural areas have potential and bottom-up development works.