Mr. Maurice Sadlier:

The point on education is really important. I was in Somalia last December. We are doing an education programme there. Communities, despite moving because of the drought, are in desperate situations. I ask them whether education is really what they want, could we not do something different for them? They say “No, if we do not have education we will be in the same situation in 100 years”. It is a top priority for families. Our job is to come in and deal with a desperate situation, which it is, but there is hope. Positive things are happening because of the Irish Aid funding and money the Irish Government channels through governments in-country and through UN agencies. There is positive progress on climate change. Looking at how communities have the knowledge, they know themselves what they can change. They know that “If we can grow this seed, it is more drought-resistant than that seed; if we grow this crop it is better for changing rains.” It is about building their capacity to be able to do that, building their ability to withstand immediate shocks because resilience gets worn away after repeated shocks. It is happening in communities, developing the resilience to implement what they know.

There are two points to pick up on. Ireland has to be commended. The Irish Government predominantly gives money in the form of grants. That is what countries need, not loans. Continuing to offer grants for humanitarian development action is really necessary. Ireland was a strong supporter of the loss and damage fund at COP27. We have asked for it to continue to be a strong supporter for loss and damage, because it is like the invoice that small island developing states should be handing to us for the climate breakdown that we have brought to the countries.

I was in the Solomon Islands in February this year. That was the country where I sat with the community members who see their shoreline disappearing. The sea is creeping further and further to their front doors. A 67-year-oldman sat with me and said when he was a boy he remembers walking out on a really long beach, and now it is coming up to his front door. That is the concern. Those communities need the loss and damage funding that will hopefully be worked on more although I do not believe there was great progress at the Bonn Climate Change Conference recently. However, it will be worked on more at COP28. We need to make sure that goes down to the local level.

Ireland is a strong advocate for locally led development in the context of its humanitarian action. We need to make sure that the communities like those that all of us are visiting and talking to are receiving loss and damage funding and that as well as going to governments, this funding is reaching the lower levels.