Overseas assistance: A chorus of condemnation that was probably unprecedented in the history of the development community in Ireland came last night from aid agencies who accused the Government of reneging on its promise to reach the United Nations target of allocating 0.7 per cent of Gross National Product in overseas assistance by the end of 2007.
But pointing out that Official Development Assistance (ODA) would reach €535 million next year, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Ahern, said: "This is the highest amount ever allocated in the history of the aid programme. And we will increase Ireland's allocation by an additional €65 million in 2006, and by another €65 million again in 2007."
Speaking at the Millennium Summit in New York four years ago, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, committed the Government to achieving the UN target by the end of 2007. However, Government figures published yesterday indicate that this target will not now be reached.
Expressing "dismay" and describing the Government's action as "indefensible", the director of Trócaire, Mr Justin Kilcullen, said: "If the Government had kept its promise, it would have spend over €1 billion on aid by 2007. Current estimates suggest that this will mean a shortfall of over €350 million per annum in Irish aid sent overseas by 2007, compared to what was promised in the Programme for Government."
Dr Brian Scott of Oxfam Ireland said: "This is a betrayal of the world's poor and a squandering of our chance to lead the world in the fight against global poverty." Oxfam Ireland disputed official projections that the aid level would reach 0.5 per cent of GNP by 2007. "The Government has set out a multi-annual plan which would only arrive at 0.46 per cent by 2007," its statement said. "What we need to see from the government now is legislation to ensure that we keep our commitment to the UN target," continued Dr Scott.
Concern deputy chief executive, Mr Paddy Maguinness, said he was "extremely disappointed" by the news. "Ireland has just been recognised as having the best quality of life in the world. The terrible irony of today's announcement is that we are selling the poor short."
Commenting that "spin cannot obscure the fact that Government is breaking its promise", Dóchas, the umbrella group of 34 Irish aid agencies, said its "U-turn" on aid was inexcusable.
The director of Dóchas, Mr Hans Zomer, said: "In a world where 1.2 billion people live on less than $1 a day and where 8,000 people die of AIDS each day, Ireland is failing to live up to its promise."
The Fine Gael foreign affairs spokesman, Mr Bernard Allen, said the aid decision was "the latest broken promise from this Government". What the Government had done amounted to "an abdication of its international responsibilities to some of the world's poorest people" .
The Labour spokesman on foreign affairs, Mr Michael D. Higgins, said: "This is a shameful day for the country. In 2000 the Taoiseach stood in front of the nations of the world in New York and gave the commitment to reach 0.7 per cent by 2007, whilst at the same time canvassing for votes for election to the Security Council which was achieved thanks in no small part to the votes of African countries."
But speaking to journalists at Leinster House, the Minister of State with responsibility for development aid, Mr Conor Lenihan, said an agreement had been secured at Cabinet level that, if Exchequer finances improved sufficiently, there would be extra funding "over and beyond the ring-fenced allocation of €190 million" for the next three years.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs said: "If you look at the percentage increase of the ODA since this Government came to office it's somewhere in the region of 240 per cent which, in anyone's language, is substantial." This was better than anything their political opponents had achieved, Mr Ahern said.
"Ireland can be proud of its development aid record. We have a top-class programme whose excellence is internationally recognised. We have been increas- ing our assistance every year.
"Our programmes are focused on the poorest and most vulnerable. They are having a positive impact on countless individual lives in Africa, in particular.
"You have to look at these increases in the context of demands for accident and emergency, for school-building. If you look right across Government departments you will see that the increases in the ODA are one of the highest, if not the highest.
"We are well ahead of the EU average, which is 0.35 per cent (of GNP). Because of the extremely good economic situation in this country, our GNP is rising faster than any other EU country."
The Minister also said he was "extremely pleased" that €8.267 million would be available to support Irish emigrants next year which was a "very substantial increase".
A further €19 million had been allocated to produce a new machine-readable passport capable of incorporating biometric information.