Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 4: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his plans to make further cuts in the overseas aid budget; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34225/08]

Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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It is estimated that Ireland's spending on official development assistance, ODA, for 2008 will reach 0.54% of GNP. The Government is committed to reaching the UN target of spending 0.7% of GNP on ODA by 2012. We remain on course to meet that objective. I am confident that this year Ireland will also maintain its position as the sixth most generous per capita donor in the world, which was confirmed by the OECD for 2007.

During the 2008 Estimates process, the Government allocated €914 million to ODA. Some €814 million was allocated to Vote 29 — international co-operation — of the Department of Foreign Affairs and an estimated €100 million to other Departments and through Ireland's allocation to the EU development co-operation budget. This allocation, based on the then estimated GNP, was made to achieve a target of 0.54% of GNP in 2008.

As the House is aware, in light of the changed economic situation, the Government reviewed current expenditure allocations across all Departments in July. The overall ODA allocation for 2008 was revised to €899 million, which continued to ensure that the ODA target as a percentage of GNP would be met. Adjustments of €45 million were identified which brought the revised allocation managed by the Department of Foreign Affairs, through Irish Aid, to €769 million.

The Government's priorities remain as set out in the White Paper on Irish Aid. Assistance to sub-Saharan Africa will continue to be the top priority, as will measures to counter climate change and rising food prices, investment in education, health, the fight against HIV-AIDS, good governance and efforts to promote gender equality. These are the issues that have the most impact on those least able to cope.

The Government is now at an advanced stage in preparing the budget for 2009. The Deputy will be aware that all public expenditure allocations for 2009 are subject to decisions taken in this process and that the Minister for Finance will present the budget to the House on 14 October.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I am delighted to hear the Minister of State say we shall be on target for the 0.7% of GNP in 2012, if I heard him correctly. Does he have any projected figures as to what the funding might be for 2009 and 2010? I have seen figures in the past for those years based on certain growth rates. I acknowledge that the economy has contracted and the figure will decrease. However, he might be able to give the House some indication.

Bearing in mind that the economy will contract, where will the cutbacks fall as regards the granting of aid? Will it affect the NGOs or the programme countries and how does he envisage doing that? Also, I am sure the Minister of State will be very anxious to deal with some of the recommendations in the Hunger Task Force report. Does he see movement towards aid for food production and the World Food Programme, in compliance with one of the report's recommendations?

Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will find out almost exactly at the same time I do what the budget allocation will be for 2009. As he well knows, nobody can predict what that will be until it is published by the Minister for Finance on that particular day. It is, however, important to know that the overarching target of 0.7% is expressed as a percentage of GNP. That obviously translates, on a year by year basis, into real terms and real money, but because it is expressed as a percentage of GNP the figure alters, accordingly. The reality is that GNP, far from being a projected 3.5% for this year, will be somewhere in the region of -0.1% and the budget is altered, accordingly. We have allocated the adjustments in 2008 equally right across the programme with the exception of missionaries and NGOs to whom we had made specific commitments at the start of the year.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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One of the recommendations of the audit report of the Committee of Public Accounts was that NGOs and missionaries needed to be given a formal role in the deployment of aid. That would be a very good development. Will the Minister of State say whether there have been proposals to do that? Also, will he look at the concept of setting up an umbrella group whereby there may be some mechanism or filter body for streamlining small projects, say, where individuals are running modest projects on their own — where someone can make a small application for funding without thousands of people arriving at the Minister of State's door? How are such projects being dealt with at present?

Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy mentioned the Hunger Task Force report. That is the subject of a separate question and we shall delve into that shortly. NGOs have an enormous role as regards delivery. They deliver more than €100 million of overseas development aid on behalf of the Irish taxpayer.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I understood their former role involved the programme countries.

Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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They are involved in all of our programme countries in their own right and——

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I am aware of that.

Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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——they are very much engaged in delivering their own programmes. As I said, they deliver an enormous percentage of the overall Irish Aid budget on the ground. Indeed they are one of the key delivery mechanisms on behalf of the taxpayer.

As regards small projects, a system is in place for micro-funding, up to a limit of €20,000. The application process is relatively simple. They are considered every couple of months and decisions are made on them. I do not see any deficiency in the system, as I understand it. Certainly, for very small NGOs comprising one or two people, the system may be difficult and we can have a look at that.