Written answers

Thursday, 20 May 2010

Department of Foreign Affairs

Overseas Development Aid

5:00 pm

Photo of Aengus Ó SnodaighAengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 48: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will take the necessary steps to introduce a clear and binding timetable with interim targets for the achievement of commitments made in relation to the overseas aid programme. [20982/10]

Photo of Peter PowerPeter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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For 2010, the Government has provided an overall allocation for Official Development Assistance (ODA) of €671 million. Of this total, €536 million will be administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs and a further estimated €135 million will come from other Government Departments, together with Ireland's share of the EU Development Cooperation budget. Based on current projections Ireland's expenditure on ODA will amount to approximately 0.52% of GNP in 2010. This level of funding confirms that Ireland remains one of the most generous donors internationally on a per capita basis.

The EU has committed to meeting the UN target of spending 0.7% of GNP by 2015. Following the budget last December, the Government committed Ireland to meeting the UN target by 2015, thereby aligning us with our fellow EU Member States. It is important to note that Ireland remains ahead of most Member States in progress towards the 2015 target and that we will exceed the interim target set by the EU of spending at least 0.51% of GNP on ODA in 2010. As we move towards 2015, the Government will make every effort, subject to the need to stabilise our public finances, to progress to the 0.7% target.

Photo of Jimmy DeenihanJimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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Question 52: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will give details of the planned overseas development aid spending on actions to alleviate and eradicate hunger in 2010; the comparable amount spent in 2009; the way any reduction in spending on action to alleviate and eradicate hunger will be accomplished; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21034/10]

Photo of Peter PowerPeter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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Combating hunger is a cornerstone of our development programme and our foreign policy. We have undertaken to direct approximately 20 per cent of the Irish Aid budget on hunger and hunger related actions by 2012. We are firmly on track to meet this target notwithstanding the current difficult economic circumstances. Ireland's leadership in this area is recognised internationally. We spent approximately €85 million on hunger and hunger related areas in 2009 and expect to maintain a similar, or possibly slightly higher, level of spending in 2010.

In framing the aid budget for 2010, I have at all times prioritised initiatives which tackle hunger and protect the world's poorest and most vulnerable. Significant resources are currently focussed on hunger reduction initiatives in our Programme Countries, in particular Malawi, Tanzania and Ethiopia. Through our support for agencies such as UNICEF we are targeting child malnutrition, and Irish humanitarian support continues to provide emergency food relief to those with the most urgent needs. In addition, Irish Aid funding for global hunger initiatives, including pro-poor agricultural research, is expected to reach approximately €9.7m this year.

The Government is committed to giving effect to the recommendations of the Report of the Hunger Task Force which we commissioned and which was launched by the Taoiseach at the UN in New York in September 2008 in the presence of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. In particular, we continue to work on the three priority areas identified, namely: increasing smallholder agricultural productivity in Africa; targeting under-nutrition, especially maternal and infant; and promoting governance and leadership action on tackling global hunger. We are making good progress in implementing the recommendations of the Report across the Irish Aid programme. Ireland's Special Envoy on Hunger, Kevin Farrell, will report on the progress that we and our partners are making towards the end of this year.

Ireland is recognised on the international stage as being a strong leader and a credible partner in the fight against global hunger, and is a major global advocate on food security. Earlier this week we hosted, together with Concern and the UN, an important international conference on global hunger to encourage comprehensive action to tackle this scourge. Next September we will co-host with the US a major event on hunger and under-nutrition at the UN Summit on the Millennium Development Goals. This event will bring together world leaders to highlight the importance of eradicating global hunger and improving nutrition in the households of the most poor. These are practical examples of Ireland shaping and influencing the international response to the scandal of world hunger.

Although global hunger, in all its manifestations and complexity, will not be easily eliminated, we can make it happen if the international community takes concerted action. We have a clear international target, the hunger target of the first Millennium Development Goal, to halve the number of hungry by 2015. The realisation of all of the other MDGs will be undermined if food, the most basic of all human needs, is not available or easily accessed by all. The Government will continue to ensure that Ireland plays its role in all efforts to eradicate the scourge of global hunger.

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 53: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will consider the inclusion of Cuba in an Irish foreign aid programme. [20934/10]

Photo of Peter PowerPeter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The White Paper on Irish Aid sets out the principles and policies underlying the aid programme. It identifies the considerations which guide the selection of long term development partners. These include factors such as the level of poverty and the scope for Ireland to make a positive impact. It also includes standards of governance, stability and the potential of the partner government to take ownership of the country's development process. In addition countries receiving emergency assistance are assisted based on immediate needs and humanitarian principles. The concentration of Ireland's development assistance on a limited number of poor countries was seen as one of its main strengths by the OECD DAC in its 2009 Peer Review of Ireland. The Government is not considering the addition of a further programme country at this time.

The Irish Aid Programme continues to have clear focus on reducing poverty in some of the poorest countries of the world through a number of different funding channels including through the United Nations, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other agencies for development programmes and projects.

Cuba has received assistance from the Irish Aid programme over the last number of years. In the aftermath of the series of devastating hurricanes which struck Cuba in 2008, Irish Aid provided emergency assistance of €150,000 to the International Federation of the Red Cross in support of the Cuban Red Cross. Other Irish Aid funding to alleviate poverty in Cuba has been channelled through international agencies such as the UN and Trócaire.

Cuba itself has a strong focus on providing development assistance through the provision of technical assistance in health and education. This includes health and medical staffing to a number of countries with which Ireland has an aid programme such as Timor Leste and Zambia. Cuba was also among the first to provide assistance to Haiti following the recent earthquake.

While Cuba is included by the OECD in the list of countries where development funding can be considered as Official Development Assistance (ODA), it is classified as an upper middle income country.

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