Naoise Ó Cearúil (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge there is a commitment in the programme for Government and the Tánaiste's commitment to international development aid. The difficulty, as he has outlined, is the global aid landscape has completely changed. The US has made massive cuts to USAID. Over $60 billion has been slashed. UK development aid is down by £6 billion. That has a huge knock-on impact on the likes of the Irish NGOs. Goal, Concern and Trócaire, which is based in my home town of Maynooth, have lost vital funding and have had to freeze recruitment and suspend some operations in countries such as Syria and Sudan. Earlier we heard of the devastating impacts in Sudan and how we as a collective need to speak more openly about Sudan. These programmes run by Irish NGOs are vital in ensuring there are supports for people in the hardest-hit areas of the world.

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