Church leaders and opposition politicians have put more pressure on the Government to meet the UN target for overseas development aid by 2010.
Catholic bishops and Fine Gael called on Taoiseach Bertie Ahern to make a clear statement when he addresses the United Nations World Summit in New York next week.
Primate of All Ireland Dr Sean Brady, Bishop of Clonfert Dr John Kirby, and Auxiliary Bishop of Dublin Dr Raymond Field made their call as they promoted Towards the Global Common Good, a document on international development.
Archbishop Brady said the bishops believed the poorest nations of the world look to Ireland to set the global standard for commitment to development aid.
"We also believe that there is substantial support among the Irish people for a compelling and world-leading target, which will express their commitment to a more just and compassionate world," he said.
"We therefore appeal to the Government to further enhance its reputation, as a global leader in development aid, and to commit itself to reach the UN target of 0.7 per cent of GNP by the year 2010 at the latest."
Chairman of Trocaire, Bishop John Kirby, said the charity was calling on the Government and other leaders to make firm commitments next week at the 60th General Assembly of the United Nations to tackle poverty and promote peace, security and human rights.
"An Taoiseach has the chance next week to deliver a new commitment on behalf of the Irish people, a commitment that is realistic, achievable and morally required," he said.
"That commitment would go a long way towards providing the international leadership necessary to change the global structures that ensure inequality and the continuation of the poverty trap for almost half of humanity.
"The Government must lead the way towards the global common good that is outlined in this pastoral letter," he added. Fine Gael Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Bernard Allen said next week's United Nations World Summit will be examining the progress made so far towards meeting the UN Millennium Summit targets, set five years ago this month.
"Of course, it was at that September 2000 meeting that the Taoiseach announced that Ireland would meet the UN target for aid by 2007," he said. "That summit was also important in that Ireland was actively campaigning for a seat on the UN Security Council at the time.
Now that our period on the UN Security Council has passed, the aid promise has been dropped." Mr Allen said other EU countries have already agreed to meet the UN target by 2015 but insisted it would be absolutely unacceptable if the Irish Government delayed meeting the aid target until this date.
"If Fianna Fail and the PDs simply accept the 2015 deadline, delaying their aid promise by 8 years, then the Government will have totally abandoned the lead adopted on this issue in 2000, and will simply be trading on the agreements and promises of other countries," the Cork North Central TD said.
"The Oireachtas Foreign Affairs Committee has called for the target to be met by 2010, which gives the Government an additional three years to meet the UN aid target, and would be 10 years after the promise was made initially.