Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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80. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on a proposal by an organisation (details supplied). [14918/18]

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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Ireland has consistently been recognised by the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) for the quality of our aid programme and the emphasis we place on achieving results for the poor, particularly in least developed countries. The OECD DAC has also commended Ireland for its consistent record on, and commitment to untied aid. The Government’s policy for international development, One World One Future, reaffirms our commitment to providing “aid that is not conditional on the procurement of goods and services from Ireland”. Ireland’s aid to developing countries continues to be untied and our long term commitment to untied aid remains firm.

Ireland does however recognise that the private sector has the potential to have a transformative impact on the world’s poor. Over the last decade, companies and investors have become more engaged in addressing development problems, largely through corporate social responsibility (CSR) and philanthropy initiatives, particularly in Least Developed Countries. Ireland provides support to countries to develop an enabling environment for the private sector to achieve both inclusive and sustainable economic development. Some of the €165 million provided by the Irish Government to Non-Governmental Organisations in 2016 was used to promote an enabling environment for private sector development. This funding equated to 23% of Ireland’s official ODA contribution for that year.

In addition, a joint initiative between the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine – the African Agri-Food Development Programme (AADP) provides opportunities for the Irish Agri-food sector to link with their counterparts in sub-Saharan Africa. Through this programme partnerships are being developed supporting sustainable growth of the local food industry, building markets for local produce and supporting mutual trade between Ireland and Africa.

Additionally, Irish development cooperation funding is also targeted to the improvement of the business climate in our key partner countries, for example Ireland’s partnership with the World Bank in Mozambique assisting the local Ministry for Industry and Commerce remove barriers for business activity. Similarly, Irish Aid has assisted the creation of an accountancy training body in Mozambique, in partnership with the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Ireland, developing an essential human resource base for both the public and private sectors.

In addition to our aid programme, Irish Embassies in developing countries work closely with Irish business, supporting them to increase investment and trade with partner countries, creating jobs and contributing to development and innovation. We will continue to support this work, while maintaining our commitment to untied aid.This work is both in our interest and that of the countries where we have a presence.