THE GOVERNMENT should increase spending on overseas development despite the State’s economic travails, according to the majority of respondents in a recent TNS mrbi survey.
The survey, which was commissioned by Trócaire, found that 39 per cent support an increase in overseas development assistance (ODA), while 26 per cent believe ODA spending should be reduced.
In the past year the Government has cut Ireland’s overseas aid budget by just under a quarter, or €222 million.
The total ODA budget for 2009 stands at €696 million, or 0.48 per cent of national income.
Aid agencies and development organisations have reacted with outrage to the cuts, insisting that public support of Ireland’s overseas development programmes remains high despite the economic crisis. Many in the sector have accused the Government of treating ODA as an easy target.
In the survey, carried out in July, respondents were asked how much they thought the Government spent on aid as a percentage of Ireland’s national income and then how much they thought the Government should spend.
The results show that almost all thought Ireland was spending far more than is actually the case.
Despite the current economic challenges, respondents were in favour of increasing the overseas aid budget, Trocaire’s director Justin Kilcullen noted. “The Government may believe that people in Ireland have forgotten about the world’s poor since the recession hit, but our research clearly disputes this. “People know that aid saves lives and they want it to continue,” he said. He called on the Government to take note of public opinion in advance of the forthcoming budget in December.
“We urge the Government not to cut the aid budget further . . . but to listen to what the public want. Despite people’s own financial worries they have clearly not forgotten the world’s poor.
“Further cuts would be unfair, unjust and totally disproportionate to cuts in other Government departments, and could mean the difference between life and death for people already living on the edge.”
The recent cuts have forced Trócaire to end its programmes in Zambia, Nigeria, Peru and Indonesia, while in Ireland alone it will have to shed 27 jobs. Concern says it will have to cut 500 jobs worldwide due to funding shortfalls.