Ireland: the state of giving

According to a web based study that targeted professional advisors called Trends in Irish philanthropy, the views of those who advise the rich, carried out by the Community foundation for Ireland in 2008, money donated to charity each year could double to €1 billion over the next five years. It is estimated that around €500 million is currently donated to charity each year, which accounts for 0.34% of GNP, which is roughly half that of the UK and around 16% of US levels.

Private giving
According to Exploring the Irish Fundraising Landscape, published in 2007 by Trinity College’s Centre for Nonprofit Management, individual giving is higher in Ireland than in other Western countries (though behind the US and UK).
However, in comparison to 1994, donations increased by only 18%, over a 50% increase in the average weekly disposable household income, in both rural and urban  households.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ranked countries in terms of estimated individual wealth, Ireland sits second, ahead of the UK, US, France, Germany and Canada.
Furthermore, the younger (18-24 years) and the older generations (70-90 years) are less likely to donate money to social causes. For these age groups, one off cash donations tend to be the most prevalent as opposed to planned or committed giving (e.g payroll, standing orders etc.).

Corporate giving
As the research Exploring the Irish Fundraising Landscape published in 2007 says, there has been little evidence to suggest there has been a planned giving strategy from business. Data from 1997 suggested that the overall contribution from the corporate sector to non profits was 0.04 per cent of a company’s turnover.
In 2001 the corporate tax relief has been modified in favour of encouraging charitable donations. With the reduction of the minimum annual threshold to €250 for tax effective giving, relatively small donations are now eligible for tax relief.