Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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81. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the amount his Department has spent on social media training and consultancy in each of the years 2011 to 2016. [18166/18]

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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82. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if training has been delivered in his Department on the use of social media; the frequency and cost of this training; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18202/18]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 81 and 82 together.

My Department provides social media training to staff to increase their capacity to promote public engagement and accountability for our work across global issues and in the delivery of services.

In-house expertise is used wherever possible and training on the use of social media is generally delivered by the Communications Unit in my Department at no additional cost.

The information requested by the Deputy regarding training that has been delivered on the use of social media, including the amounts spent on social media consultancy in each of the years 2011 – 2016, is set out in the following table. From time to time the Department’s eighty missions overseas may incur modest miscellaneous expenses in relation to social media training.