Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 593: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on his recent visit to South Africa and Tanzania with An Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern to see Irish Aid Projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1682/08]

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Taoiseach visited South Africa and Tanzania from 13 to 18 January. He was accompanied by the Minister for Trade and Enterprise, Michéal Martin, T.D. and the Minister of State for Overseas Aid, Michael Kitt, T.D.

The key objectives of the visit were to further develop Irish–South African bilateral and trade relations, and to visit Irish Aid funded development projects and programmes in South Africa and Tanzania.

In South Africa, the Taoiseach had meetings with President Thabo Mbeki and Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngucka, where discussions focused on political, trade and development issues. The Taoiseach was accompanied by a large trade delegation, with over fifty companies taking part, including from Northern Ireland. The Taoiseach carried out a series of trade-related engagements organised in conjunction with IDA, Enterprise Ireland, Bord Bia and Tourism Ireland, with the aim of developing the presence of Irish companies in South Africa through trade, investment, partnerships and other business linkages.

The Taoiseach visited a number of development aid projects supported by the Government through Irish Aid. Ireland has been providing bilateral assistance to South Africa since the transition from apartheid to a democratic, non-racial Government in 1994. In December 2007 Irish Aid finalised a 5 year programme to provide bilateral assistance of over €65 million to South Africa from 2008 to 2012.

In Cape Town the Taoiseach visited the Niall Mellon Township Trust where he announced funding of €5 million to support the Trust in the provision of housing. He also announced the official launch of Chello, a charity working on educational scholarships for children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. The Taoiseach visited the offices of Eurocape, where the Mandela Rhodes Place development is viewed as a flagship inner city rejuvenation project. The Taoiseach also visited Leratong Hospice, founded by Fr. Kieran Creagh from Belfast, which is being supported by Irish Aid.

In Tanzania, the Taoiseach was accompanied by the Minister for Overseas Development, Mr Michael Kitt, T.D.

The Taoiseach held meetings with President Kikwete and senior Government ministers. Discussions focused on political and developments issues. Tanzania is one of nine priority countries supported by Ireland's development programme. Irish Aid expects to provide direct bilateral assistance of approximately €170 million in the current programme period to 2010. This includes support for health, HIV/AIDS activities, agriculture, local government and good governance. Additional assistance will be channelled through NGOs, missionaries and international partners.

In Dar-es-Salaam the Taoiseach visited a disability facility run by the Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation Treatment (CCBRT), a non-governmental organisation which provides services for a wide variety of eye, orthopaedic and other conditions, and for which he announced funding of €1.3 million over three years. The Taoiseach also announced funding of €400,000 to support a programme of surgical training in ten countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa, including Tanzania. This training will be implemented in partnership with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). He also visited a public hospital and a water point, funded by Irish Aid, in partnership with the Government of Tanzania, which provides clean water for a community of 15,000 people.

The Taoiseach travelled to Mwanza, in northwest Tanzania, where he met local people and community leaders working in farming and private enterprise. He visited a school and a women's centre which provides support for victims of gender-based violence. He also met Irish missionaries working in the area.

The Taoiseach's visit to South Africa and Tanzania has made an important contribution to enhancing Ireland's bilateral relations and to promoting trade with those countries. It also provided an important opportunity to see at first hand the positive impact of the work of Ireland's aid programme on the lives of ordinary people and to reaffirm Ireland's commitment to working in partnership with developing countries to reduce poverty in a real and lasting way.

Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 594: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if Ireland is making a special contribution to assist the Government of Zambia in dealing with the effects of floods that have left thousands of people homeless during their rainy season; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1683/08]

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Heavy rains and storms since the beginning of December 2007 have caused severe flooding in southern Africa, including Zambia. A UN Preliminary Emergency Appeal for the region has been issued and a Revised Emergency Appeal, providing a more detailed operational plan will be completed shortly. World Food Programme (WFP) staff are currently on the ground, carrying out this assessment. Good preparations have been made by the Zambian Government in advance of the flooding and to date some of the worst effects have been mitigated. However much depends on the extent of future rainfall.

Once the assessment is completed funding is expected to be released from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). Ireland is a key donor to the CERF, which was established specifically to facilitate rapid response to emergencies such as that affecting southern Africa, including Zambia, at the moment. Ireland has contributed approximately €30 million to the CERF and will provide further funding shortly.

Zambia is one of Ireland's priority countries for development assistance. The budget allocation for 2008 is €27 million. These funds are delivered across a range of sectors including, HIV/Aids, education, governance and civil society. Our Embassy in Lusaka is monitoring the situation on the ground carefully and we remain prepared to continue to respond as the situation unfolds.