Trocaire raised almost £18 million for its Third World projects last year, the highest figure since the Catholic bishops set up the agency 25 years ago.
Income amounted to £17.8 million for the year to last February, a rise of nearly 40 per cent on the previous year. More than two-thirds of this came in donations from the Irish public. More than £6 million was received in contributions from church collections and during the annual Lenten campaign.
The increase is largely due to the improved economic situation, as well as several high-profile campaigns to which the public responded generously. Last year's appeal for the victims of famine and floods in North Korea raised £3.3 million, for example, more than six times the amount originally targeted.
Funding from the Government, the EU and other large donors was also up, to nearly £7 million.
Trocaire's annual report also reveals that spending on general management and administration has dropped to 4.9 per cent, from 6.3 per cent the previous year. But spending on fund-raising and publicity grew from 5 per cent to 6.4 per cent.
Trocaire's director, Mr Justin Kilcullen, expressed his gratitude to the Irish public for the increase in donations. "Over the past 25 years, Trocaire has always been able to rely on Irish generosity. We are delighted that, despite our new-found prosperity, the Irish people have not shed their traditional values.
"Compassion, that sense of solidarity and the desire for fair play have allowed Trocaire to continue its work. Lives have been saved because the Irish have stuck to their principles."
In total, the agency spent £14 million last year on more than 500 projects. Almost £6 million went on Africa, with Rwanda continuing to be a priority. More housing was built for the survivors of the 1994 genocide, and the trauma counselling programme was expanded.
Mr Kilcullen called on the rich countries to mark the millennium's end by freeing the world's poorest countries from "the unbearable burden of debt". He described debt as "a new form of slavery"; if the severely indebted countries of Africa were relieved of their debt repayments, the extra money could be invested to save the lives of 21 million children, he said.
