Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I have received apologies from Senator Joe O'Reilly. I welcome our guests and those in the Public Gallery.

Our agenda item today is engagement with the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ireland's small island developing states, SIDS, strategy, the impact of climate change in countries supported by Irish Aid, and an update on matters of development co-operation. The SIDS strategy was launched by the Tánaiste at COP28 in December before the end of the year.

I am pleased that today we will meet with Mr. Michael Gaffey, director general of development co-operation and the Africa division, along with his colleagues from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Ms Caroline Phelan, SIDS lead for global programmes, and Mr. Niall Tierney, director for global programmes and global citizen education unit. They are all very welcome.

The format of our meeting, which will be familiar to our witnesses, is in the usual manner. We will hear an opening statement from Mr. Gaffey followed by a question and answer session with members of the committee. I ask members to be concise in their questions to allow all members the opportunity to participate.

In respect of privilege, members and witnesses are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice that they should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it in any way identifiable or otherwise engage in speech that might be regarded as damaging to the good name of the person or entity. Therefore, if their statements are potentially defamatory in relation to an identifiable person or entity, witnesses will be directed to discontinue their remarks. Of course, it is imperative that any direction be fully complied with.

For witnesses attending remotely from outside of the Leinster House campus, there are some limitations to parliamentary privilege and as such they may not benefit from the same level of immunity from legal proceedings as a witness does if physically present in the room or on the campus. I remind members they are only allowed to participate if they are physically located in Leinster House.

I remind our guests from the Department of Foreign Affairs that we still operate a kind of Covid hybrid here insofar as members may well be attending from their offices. I do not see any such members, but if it happens in the course of the meeting, I will give an appropriate notice. With that, I thank members for attending and call Mr. Gaffey to make his opening statement.