Ireland: aid to development

Ireland has had an official development assistance programme since 1974. In 2008, the total of Official Development Assistance (ODA) is estimated to be €899 million as the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs reveals. Among EU members States, Ireland is years ahead in terms of resources dedicated to aid to development.
In 2005, EU Member States committed to achieving the Millennium Development Goal of increasing the volume of ODA to 0.5% of GNP by 2010 and 0.7% by 2015.
In 2006, Ireland had already achieved the first EU target of allocating 0.5% of its GNP with ODA spending of €813 million. Ireland will reach the United Nations ODA spending target of 0.7% of GNP, with €1.5 billion by 2012, three years ahead of EU target by 2015. In real terms, this means that between 2007 and 2012 Ireland spends as much as €6 billion in overseas aid.

The Irish Aid programme has had a strong geographic focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. Approximately 80% of Ireland’s Overseas Development Aid goes to Africa. Irish Aid operates intensive and wide-ranging country programmes in seven countries in Africa: Lesotho, Mozambique, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zambia, and Uganda and Malawi. While, Timor-Leste and Vietnam, both in Asia, are Ireland’s remaining programme countries.