Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

The Government remains strongly committed to achieving the UN target of 0.7% of GNP for expenditure on official development assistance. The issues of how best to meet the target and in what timeframe is under ongoing review. Ireland and the other EU member states agreed last week to reach an interim target of 0.51% by 2010 and to reach the 0.7% target by 2015. I have stated publicly that I hope Ireland will be ahead of the terms of the new EU commitment, by reaching the UN target of 0.7% before 2015.

The recently produced information pack on Development Co-operation Ireland was designed to give an overview of the work of Ireland's official development programme. The pack, which shows how the money of Irish taxpayers is being spent in some of the world's poorest countries, is a general information guide that introduces people to the work of Development Co-operation Ireland. It has been circulated at a number of recent public meetings, which were convened in various parts of the country as part of the preparation of the White Paper on development co-operation policy. I intend to ensure that the pack is updated at regular intervals as part of the Government's ongoing efforts to keep the public informed about what it is doing in this important area.

It has been clear at the seven public meetings which have been held throughout the country that there is a strong public appetite for more information about the work of Development Co-operation Ireland. The information pack and a variety of other public information initiatives are designed to bridge the knowledge gap and increase understanding about the Government's development assistance work. When decisions have been taken about how best to meet the target and in what timeframe, such matters will be reflected in subsequent editions of the information pack.

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