Written answers
Tuesday, 8 April 2025
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Departmental Projects
Aidan Farrelly (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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223. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide a schedule of all capital projects being delivered or which have been completed by his Department and organisations under the aegis of his Department since 1 January 2020; the total project cost of projects in excess of €500,000, or of any other capital projects below this that have come to his Department's attention for reasons of overspend or due to the fact that they failed to be delivered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16684/25]
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade invests its capital budget each year in a wide range of areas to ensure improved operations, to deliver the future infrastructural needs of the Department and provide enhanced services to citizens.
Below is a listing that details the major capital projects undertaken, in excess of €500,000, in the period January 2020-March 2025:
| Type | Project Name | Project Status | Expenditure |
|---|---|---|---|
| ICT | Passport Reform Programme | Ongoing | €11.2m |
| ICT | Desktop/Laptop Refresh Project | Complete | €0.8m |
| ICT | SAN Replacement | Complete | €0.8m |
| ICT | Digital Ireland House (Ireland.ie) | Complete | €0.6m |
| ICT | Grants Management System | Ongoing | €1.3m |
| Property Purchase | Official Accommodation Santiago | Complete | €1.2m |
| Property Purchase | Official Accommodation Armagh | Complete | €1.3m |
| Property Purchase | Chancery Rabat | Ongoing | €0.6m |
| Property Purchase | Official Accommodation Washington* | Complete | €11.5m |
| Property Purchase | Official Accommodation New York | Complete | €7.7m |
| Property Purchase | Official Accommodation Bogota | Complete | €2.8m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Ireland House New York | Finalising Account | €3.7m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Chancery Abuja | Ongoing | €7.2m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Expo 2020 Dubai | Complete | €5.1m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Expo 2025 Osaka | Ongoing | €6.9m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Chancery Frankfurt | Ongoing | €3.3m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Ireland House Chicago | Complete | €1.5m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Ireland House London | Ongoing | €1.3m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Chancery Manila | Complete | €1.2m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Ireland House Singapore | Complete | €1.3m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Ireland House Tokyo | Finalising Account | €20.5m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Chancery Los Angeles | Complete | €1.3m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Ireland House Shanghai | Complete | €0.9m |
| Property Fit-out/Construction | Chancery Ottawa | Complete | €2.7m |
The completed capital projects above have come in within budget and have delivered their objectives. The Department uses project management and governance procedures to monitor all its capital projects to ensure that they deliver their objectives and are managed effectively within budget.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is currently managing a number of property projects as part of its commitment to realise the ambition of the Global Ireland strategy. These include new missions and Ireland Houses as well as key strategic projects identified in the National Development Plan. The projects are being developed to deliver a mission network of high quality, safe, secure, sustainable workplaces to double Ireland’s global impact and influence to 2025 and beyond.
In addition, a number of projects with a capital spend of less than €500,000, consisting mostly of minor property refurbishments, minor ICT infrastructure upgrades and upkeep of the Passport Service hardware and software infrastructure, were also delivered in the same period. These projects delivered with their allocated budget and met their objectives.
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