Dáil Report: Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Conor Lenihan has expressed his determination to address staffing levels in the development of Ireland's overseas aid programme. A predecessor criticised as "reckless" plans for major expansion without proper staffing levels.
During a debate on the Government's White Paper on Irish Aid, former minister of state Liz O'Donnell said she was "alarmed" at the paper's section on management. "It is thin gruel and simply a proposal for a review of management." Management changes could not be postponed, given the scale of public funds involved.
"It is reckless for the programme to be expanded to the extent that it is planned" without the inadequacies in staffing being addressed. "Organisations such as Concern manage much smaller budgets with more staff involved," the Progressive Democrats backbencher said.
Mr Lenihan said Ms O'Donnell was "correct in stating that we cannot continue to deliver this massive expansion in the programme with current staffing.
"Following recent discussions with the Taoiseach and the Minister for Finance, I am confident that we can achieve an increase in staffing and I will insist that the expansion is accompanied by staff increases that match the significant amounts of money now being committed to the cause."
The Government has committed itself to reaching the UN target of contributing 0.7 per cent of GNP each year to overseas development, by 2012.
The Minister of State emphasised that "we are not and will never be a soft touch for people who wish to purloin Irish aid and pervert it for other purposes, self-aggrandising or otherwise. However, we are well evaluated. In the last two years, I have secured 20 additional staff for the purposes of evaluation and audit within my Department.
"This was achieved against a background of a Civil Service embargo on recruitment so I have delivered in that respect. I am determined that the medium-term needs of this particular programme as it expands, particularly in respect of staffing, will be addressed."
Opening the debate, Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern said aid had trebled from 1996 when it was €142 million a year. Mr Ahern said that "in Lesotho in 1999, enrolment in primary schools was at 57 per cent. With Ireland's support, by 2003 this figure had increased to 82 per cent."
Bernard Durkan (FG, Kildare North) said Irish efforts were "laudable" but it would "all come to naught unless there is the application of good governance on the side of the recipients".
Labour's spokesman Michael D Higgins said it was important that the Government should not regard the 0.7 per cent target as a limit. "Countries in Scandinavia have already exceeded 1 per cent." Income divide on the planet was increasing.
Paudge Connolly (Ind, Cavan-Monaghan) suggested that each developed country should adopt one of the Third World countries, rather than a "scatter gun" approach. "This is the only way we can go forward."
Green Party spokesman John Gormley said there was now only one model of development - "growth at all costs. Developing countries are taking on board all western values, which is fine as long as a certain number of people can benefit."
Arthur Morgan (SF, Louth) welcomed the commitment to untied aid but said the Government "has supported the imposition of damaging trade liberalisation policies on developing countries".
