Trócaire reports donation fall-off of 44%

Donations to Trócaire tumbled last year as emergencies in Africa and Pakistan failed to provoke the same outpouring of generosity as the 2004 tsunami that affected southeast Asia.

Donations from the public were down 44 per cent last year and overall income fell 41 per cent, according to the agency's latest annual report.

Compared to the €30.1 million raised for the tsunami, just €1.7 million was donated to help survivors of the earthquake in Pakistan and €2.8 million to alleviate food shortages and droughts in many parts of eastern and southern Africa.

The key factor in the massive success of fundraising campaigns for the tsunami was extensive television coverage and the involvement of western holidaymakers who were caught up in the tragedy. In contrast, attempts to raise money for African disasters consistently ran into problems of "aid fatigue".

Trócaire raised almost €34 million from the public last year; this was higher than the €25 million raised in 2003, 2002 and 2001. Some €60 million was raised in 2004, largely thanks to the tsunami appeal and a smaller one for Darfur.

The sum raised by Trócaire during its Lenten campaign fell from €11.2 million in 2004 to €10.1 million last year. Income from the 24-hour fast campaign also dropped, from €1.6 million to just over €1 million, but the Christmas global gift campaign saw contributions rise from €3.1 million to €3.5 million.

Other agencies have also seen a fall-off in income since the tsunami, though this has yet to be reflected in their annual accounts. The decrease in Trócaire's income is more marked because its 2005 accounts start in March that year. The tsunami occurred in late December 2004 and most funds were raised in the two-month period that followed.

Money raised from the public is doubly important for agencies, because it enables them to claim matching funds from Government agencies. Last year, Trócaire got more than €4 million from the European Commission, almost €12 million from Irish Aid and almost €2 million from a variety of Government and corporate donors.

Spending on general management and administration of Trócaire rose to 2.3 per cent of expenditure, up from 1.7 per cent.

Trócaire's annual report identifies climate change as the biggest challenge facing development, with reductions in crop yields, disease spread in high temperatures, and salt water intrusion from rising sea levels all forecast for this century.

Writing in the agency's annual report, policy analyst Dr Lorna Gold says Ireland's record in dealing with climate change is abysmal.