Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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594. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the funding that is available for the provision of information technology access and training for older persons (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24235/17]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The Government is committed under the National Digital Strategy to actively supporting people, including in particular older citizens, to embrace digital technologies so that they can reap the economic and social benefits of digital inclusion.

My Department's new Digital Skills for Citizens Scheme aims to tackle a key barrier to digital adoption by giving people who have never used the internet the skills and confidence to move online. 

In December 2016, following a competitive call for proposals under the new scheme, I awarded €2.2m in grant funding to 15 community, voluntary and not-for-profit organisations to provide basic digital skills training to some 26,000 citizens across all Counties during 2017.  Digital literacy training is targeted at people over 45, farming communities, small business owners, the unemployed, persons with disabilities and disadvantaged groups.

I understand from my officials that the entity referred to in the Question was issued with the scheme’s Statement of Requirements which outlined the qualifying criteria and the options open to all community, voluntary and not-for-profit organisations to apply for grant funding.

My Department signed a grant agreement with the 15 which specifies the governance, monitoring and reporting arrangements which oversee the delivery of training targets in line with commitments.  Decisions relating to the implementation of the skills training are operational matters for individual organisations, and not one in which I have a role.  I am aware, however, that organisations opt to partner with other entities in order to deliver their training commitments.  

Further details regarding the Digital Skills for Citizens Scheme, including the locations of the training classes taking place throughout the Country, are available at .