Written answers
Thursday, 28 September 2023
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Foreign Policy
Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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129. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the steps that continue to be taken at EU and UN level to ban the use of child soldiers at the various locations of such activities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42086/23]
Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The UN Secretary-General issues an annual report on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) which examines both trends and specific country situations, listing all armed groups that recruit and use children.
In his latest 2023 report, the Secretary-General confirmed twenty-three countries where more than 27,180 grave violations against children were verified. In this report, a “blatant and systematic disregard for international humanitarian law and international human rights law” was highlighted as a key issue severely affecting the protection of children internationally. The use of explosive weapons, notably in populated areas, was cited as one of the factors having a most severe impact on children. The situations in Gaza, the Syrian Arab Republic, Ukraine and Yemen were noted as being particularly concerning in this regard.
The UN Secretary General’s Special Representative on Children and Armed Conflict also presented her most recent report at the 52nd Session of the UN Human Rights Council, painting a disturbing picture of the plight of children in conflict situations around the world.
Ireland is an active member of the Group of Friends of CAAC, as well as the Group of Friends of the Reintegration of Child Soldiers. Ireland continues to combat the use of child soldiers through our development programme, with a focus on addressing the socio-economic causes that contribute to this situation, through providing access to education, skills and livelihood opportunities. Ireland is also a signatory to the Safe Schools Declaration which outlines a set of commitments designed to strengthen the protection of education from attack, restrict the use of schools and universities for military purposes and ensure the continuity of education in armed conflict zones.
Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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130. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the steps that are ongoing to provide assistance by way of Irish bilateral or multilateral aid, with particular focus on starvation/famine, at the most prominent locations in Africa currently in need of appropriate assistance in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42087/23]
Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The world is facing a crisis of hunger and malnutrition. The 2023 Global Report on Food Crises issued by the World Food Programme reported that nearly 258 million people were experiencing crisis, emergency or famine-like levels of food insecurity, up from 193 million in 2021. Before the end of the year, levels of food insecurity are likely to rise further in 18 particularly hard-hit countries. Over half of these are in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Through our international development programme, Ireland has focused strongly on the alleviation of hunger and suffering in crises across the globe. In 2022 Ireland provided a total of €297 million in humanitarian assistance, an increase of 31% from 2021. Funding decisions are made on the basis of need. This translates into a strong focus on locations in Sub-Saharan Africa where hunger is most severe, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan.
Ireland’s humanitarian assistance is provided by way of bilateral and multilateral aid. It is channeled to a range of trusted and experienced partners: UN agencies, the European Union, the Red Cross Family and Non-Governmental Organisations. Ireland provides €25 million each year to the UN World Food Programme, the leading provider of emergency food assistance.
Ireland also has a strong focus on preventing hunger and developing sustainable food systems. At the December 2021 Nutrition for Growth Summit, Ireland pledged to provide a total of €800 million over five years on nutrition and food security. At the UN last September, Ireland pledged an additional €50 million over three years to address the scandal of acute malnutrition among children. We will provide over €284 million in assistance for food, agriculture and nutrition in 2023.
We are addressing acute food insecurity while also investing in prevention and food systems, an approach which will be key, internationally, to reversing the trend of rising global hunger.
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