Carol Nolan (Laois-Offaly, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

391. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the non-governmental organisations in receipt of funding from his Department; the amount of funding allocated to same in 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24374/21]

Colm Brophy (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Department of Foreign Affairs provides funding to a range of non-governmental organisations through a series of grant schemes dedicated to delivering on the Government's priorities at home and abroad. These include support for international development overseas, development education in Ireland, reconciliation on the island of Ireland, emigrant support and information on the European Union as well as responding to humanitarian emergencies and promoting international peace and stability.

The Department of Foreign Affairs publishes a report on Ireland's Official Development Assistance (ODA) programme, known as Irish Aid, each year. The report includes statistical information on programme expenditure in a series of annexes which clearly show the distribution of aid, including the the amounts allocated to our priority focus areas as set out in A Better World, Ireland’s international development policy, as well as individual grants, including to NGOs. The Annual Report serves as a core accountability and transparency tool, providing a comprehensive overview of expenditure under the aid programme, and demonstrating the results that have been achieved. Annual Reports for 2019 and previous years are available on the Irish Aid website.

With regard to figures for 2020, validation of data on Ireland’s ODA programme is done in arrears, and prior to publication, draft statistical returns are shared with the relevant OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) experts for assurance that Ireland's reported spending meets the DAC's criteria to be counted as ODA. This assurance is important to maintaining Ireland's reputation as a quality donor. Total figures including aggregated data for NGO grants for 2020 are being finalised and will be published in the 2020 ODA Annual Report later this year. A copy of this report will be made available to the Deputy following its publication.

Similarly, the data on non-ODA grants to NGOs by the Department of Foreign Affairs will be available in the Department's overall 2020 Annual Report. A copy of this report will be made available to the Deputy following its publication.