One of the largest-ever aid packages to an individual country has been announced by the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, writes Carol Coulter. On the first day of her visit to Mozambique yesterday Ms Liz O'Donnell committed £22 million to help rebuild two of the country's poorest provinces, Naiffa and Inhambane, after decades of civil war.
Mozambique is one of Ireland's priority countries for aid, which means that substantial amounts can be given to support long-term projects, according to a spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs. The money will be spent both by provincial governments and by Irish aid agencies working in the areas.