Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The rural regeneration development fund is a game changer for rural Ireland. The Department has allocated €52 million in funding in 2019 for projects supported by the rural fund. The first call for applications was closed in September 2018 and 280 applications were received, out of which 38 successful category 1 projects were approved, which have planning and other consents in place and are ready to go. The 46 vital projects in category 2 have been announced with funding of €86 million to support projects worth €170 million. A total of €1 billion is available in the rural regeneration fund over the next ten years and we need to have a cycle of projects coming through, from inception to getting the consents, at which point they move to category 2, the detailed design and procurement stage, before being built. This is the game changer that rural Ireland needs. When we look back on it, we will see it as one of the most significant funding opportunities rural Ireland has had from the Department.

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