Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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697. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if the emigrant programme for finance is in operation; if it promotes renewable projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28555/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Government of Ireland Emigrant Support Programme (ESP) is administered by Irish Abroad Unit of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in partnership with Ireland’s embassies and consulates abroad. It has a budget in 2017 of €11.595 million. The Emigrant Support Programme is a tangible expression of the Government’s support of, commitment to, and interest in the global Irish community. It aims to strengthen the international Irish community and its bond with Ireland. Grants range from small amounts for grass-roots groups to major allocations awarded to voluntary and community organisations operating on a large scale. Proposals for projects to take place during the 1 July 2017 – 30 June 2018 funding year are currently under evaluation.

The Emigrant Support Programme funds projects that that meet the following nine objectives: celebrate, maintain and strengthen the links between Ireland and the Global Irish; address the diverse and evolving needs of Irish emigrants, especially the elderly, disadvantaged and vulnerable; facilitate access to statutory and voluntary services in their country of residence for Irish emigrants; foster a more vibrant sense of community and of Irish identity; further the outcomes of the Global Irish Economic Forum; support business networks to connect Irish people to each other at home and abroad; research and define the emerging needs of Irish communities abroad; support development of new ways to communicate and connect with the increasingly diverse global Irish, including non-traditional diasporas; and improve awareness and understanding of the emigrant and diaspora experience.