Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 306: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the contacts he has had with the Government of Kenya; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10119/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland conducts bilateral relations with Kenya through our Ambassador, based in Dar-es-Salaam and the Kenyan Ambassador in Dublin, as well as through multilateral channels.

On a bilateral level Ireland established diplomatic relations with Kenya in 1979 with the opening of an Embassy in Nairobi. That mission was closed for financial reasons in 1988 and we are currently represented on a non-resident basis by our Ambassador in Dar-es-Salaam, H.E. Ms. Anne Barrington, who travels to Kenya on a regular basis. Kenya opened an Embassy in Ireland in 2007 and is represented by H.E. Ambassador Catherine Muigai Mwangi.

President McAleese and Minister of State Liz O'Donnell visited Kenya in 2001 and paid a courtesy call on then-President Daniel Arap Moi. Minister of State Tom Kitt visited Kenya as part of an EU troika mission in 2003. Minister Dermot Ahern visited Kenya in April 2008 in the wake of the February power-sharing agreement which ended post-election violence.

The Kenyan Minister for Tourism, the Honourable Najib Balala, will visit Ireland from 5th to 8th of this month, and it is hoped that the Kenyan Foreign Minister will be able to visit later in the year.

On the multilateral level, Ireland conducts relations with Kenya through our respective Permanent Missions to the United Nations and also through the EU with the Kenyan Mission in Brussels and our Ambassador in Addis Ababa who is accredited to the African Union.

Since 2006, Irish Aid has provided over €27 million in humanitarian and development funding for Kenya, which is channelled through Irish, international and local NGOs, and UN agencies.

Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 307: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the contacts he has had with the Government of Uganda; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10120/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland and Uganda established diplomatic relations in 1995. Ireland is represented in Kampala by Ambassador Kevin Kelly. The Ugandan Ambassador in London, H.E. Mrs. Joan Rwabyomere, is accredited to Ireland. On the multilateral level, Ireland conducts relations with Uganda through our respective Permanent Missions to the United Nations and also through the EU with the Ugandan in Brussels and our Ambassador in Addis Ababa who is accredited to the African Union.

There have been many visits in both directions, and other contacts, over the last decade. President Museveni visited Ireland in 2000 and 2003, and President McAleese paid a state visit to Uganda in 2001. Irish parliamentary delegations visited Uganda in 2004 and 2006. Then-Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern met Ugandan Foreign Minister Kutesa at the UN General Assembly in 2007. Minister Martin met the Ugandan Deputy Foreign Minister, Henry Okello Oryem, at the Cluster Munitions Conference in Dublin in May 2008.

Uganda is an Irish Aid Programme Country and received more than €51 million in Irish Aid development funding in 2008, as well as €450,000 to support the Juba peace talks on northern Uganda.

The Irish Embassy in Kampala, together with our EU partners, maintains regular contact with the Ugandan Government on a range of issues related to development, and also human rights and justice issues.