Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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382. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the progress made by her Department in respect of targets and goals set out in sustainable development goals of the 2030 United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development under the policy remit of her Department; and if these targets and goals will be met by their respective deadlines. [12912/23]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) thereunder is an ambitious framework for which a whole-of-Government implementation approach has been taken in Ireland.

Ireland’s Second National Implementation Plan for the Sustainable Development Goals 2022 – 2024 was published in October 2022. The Plan was developed by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications in collaboration with all Government Departments, key stakeholders, and based on input from two public consultation processes. A key objective of the Plan is to achieve greater policy coherence for Sustainable Development (PCSD) with the aim of accelerating achievement of the SDGs at all levels of Government.

The Plan is supplemented by two supporting documents: an SDG policy map which identifies the lead Departments and relevant national policies for each of the 169 SDG targets, and a Policy Update document which provides policy updates for each of the SDG targets. These documents are available at www.gov.ie/sdgs

The Central Statistics Office, in collaboration with all Government Departments, has prepared a series of statistical publications which monitor and report on how Ireland is progressing towards meeting its targets under the 17 SDGs. Reports are available for SDGs 1 – 16 and can be found on the Central Statistics Office website.

My Department has responsibility for leading implementation of the following specific targets under SDGs 8, 11 and 12:

Target 8.9 - By 2030, devise and implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products.

As we look to rebuild the tourism sector in a post-pandemic world, my Department has initiated the development of a new national tourism policy that will seek to mainstream sustainability. The development of this new policy will involve extensive consultation with the tourism industry and our communities to help set out a path for the coming years which will support a sustainable recovery and subsequent growth in the sector.

This new policy will build upon the work undertaken by the Sustainable Tourism Working Group, under the aegis of my Department, which has developed Guiding Principles for Sustainable Tourism Development in Ireland. Initial consultations with key stakeholders have taken place prior to a more wide spread public consultation in the coming months.

This new tourism policy will seek to support sustainable economic development in communities throughout the country, whilst protecting our environment and natural resources, and with a greater spread of demand across the year.

Target 11.4 - Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage

Together with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage which has primary responsibility for the protection and safeguarding of Ireland’s natural heritage, my Department has responsibility for safeguarding elements of Ireland’s rich cultural heritage including our arts and culture, our sports and Gaeltacht communities. In that regard, in 2015 Ireland ratified the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Since 2017, our unique practices of Uilleann Piping, Hurling and Irish Harping have been recognised by UNESCO and inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In December 2021, Falconry in Ireland joined 23 other countries as part of a multinational inscription to the UNESCO Representative List. Ireland is currently coordinating a multinational application for drystone construction in Ireland, (along with Andorra, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg) to join the existing multinational inscription on the UNESCO Representative List.

My Department has also developed a National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage where 38 practices have been inscribed. This work by my Department, in close cooperation with the communities concerned and with international partners, strengthens awareness raising and supports the safeguarding of our rich and diverse cultural heritage. More information on the National Inventory and practices can be found here nationalinventoryich.chg.gov.ie/.

Target 12.b - Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism which creates jobs, promotes local culture and products.

In October 2021, the Sustainable Tourism Working Group under the aegis of my Department published a suite of actions to promote sustainable tourism practices in Ireland. The actions identified in the report aimed to establish new research methods, which would increase the level of evidence available, and form a clear narrative for communicating about the sustainability agenda, to build a better understanding and awareness among tourism stakeholders and the general public. The report also aimed to ensure that sustainability is taken into account in policy development, business planning by the agencies and industry as well as in destination management and promotional activity.

In this regard, Fáilte Ireland has ensured that the guiding principles for Sustainable Tourism Development are embedded in their Destination Experience Development Plans. They are currently preparing tourism sector Regional Tourism Strategies 2023-2027 for the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands, Ireland’s Ancient East, and Dublin. All four plans have a dedicated sustainability strategy based on the guiding principles for sustainable tourism development.

In addition, under the ‘National Implementation Plan for the Sustainable Development Goals 2022-2024’, Action 43, Sport Ireland is currently undertaking a research project to map the Irish National Sports Policy (2018-2027) to the United Nations Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, in order to capture and highlight the contribution of the National Sports Policy towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Feedback on the first draft of the report and frameworks have been submitted to the consultants to incorporate. The Research and Innovation team in Sport Ireland will work with the Department for the launch and dissemination of this report, expected to take place in Q2 2023.