Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent)
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216. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development when a decision on the community recognition fund for 2023 will be announced; if the date of 6 October for the first drawdown of funds will be extended; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22048/23]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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In January, I launched the Community Recognition Fund which aims to support the development of community infrastructure and facilities in recognition of the contribution being made by communities across the country in welcoming and hosting significant numbers of arrivals from Ukraine and other countries.

The funding is specifically targeted at projects that are located in communities, towns and villages that are hosting the beneficiaries of Temporary Protection and/or International Protection applicants. The Fund will support the development of facilities that will be used in the future by all members of the community. It is separate in its objectives and scope to any other public funding streams which aim to support the development of public service needs arising from the significant number of arrivals from Ukraine.

The Fund is being administered at a local level by the relevant local authority. A funding proposal, comprising of projects selected and prioritised locally, was submitted to my Department by each local authority for final approval. A key principle of the Fund was the need for local authorities to engage with impacted communities. The funding proposals submitted by each local authority were developed based on direct engagement with impacted communities and in consultation with the Municipal Districts, Local Community Development Committee and the local Community Response Fora.

I am happy to confirm that over 830 proposed projects are included in the funding proposals received, with the €50 million being fully subscribed. I would like to thank all those who were involved in the consultations and the development of these proposals in communities all across Ireland. It was important to me that the projects were developed in consultation with communities so that the best value for money could be achieved in a way that ensures clear impacts and benefits for those communities.

The funding proposals are under consideration in the Department and I expect to make an announcement on them shortly as I am aware that local authorities and communities are anxious to commence work on projects.

I understand the majority of proposals are small-scale capital projects seeking funding of under €30,000. Typically such projects relate to either the purchase of equipment or undertaking minor capital works. I expect these projects will progress quickly once announced and the vast majority of these will be delivered by October.

I expect a longer time frame will apply for the more substantial capital proposals. The larger capital proposals will have until November 2024 to progress to completion.