Sir, - In recent days there has been a deal of press coverage and misleading comment about the relationship between the Department of Foreign Affairs and GOAL. I want to clarify the present situation and set out the sequence of developments that brought it about.
No funds from the Department have been provided to GOAL so far this year. The reason for this is GOAL's failure to comply with its obligations under Emergency Humanitarian Aid agreements made with the Department. Under these agreements, GOAL is required to show each grant from the Department individually within its audited accounts. Despite this obligation, GOAL's audited accounts for 1995, which were presented in January 1997, did not provide the specific information required. GOAL's failure to supply this information prevents the Department from fulfilling its own obligation to ensure proper accountability for the use of public funds.
On April 23rd 1997, a delegation from the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO) raised with the Department specific concerns it had in relation to GOAL. These arose from complaints made to ECHO by former GOAL employees in Africa to the effect that funds provided by ECHO had not been used for their intended purpose. At ECHO's request, the Department undertook to compare notes with them on the funding of GOAL projects in Angola.
From an exchange of information on a sample of projects in Angola (both ECHO and the Department fund many other GOAL projects), it was apparent that GOAL had sought funding from the Agency for Personal Service Overseas (APSO) for assignments which had in fact been fully funded by ECHO. In their applications to APSO, GOAL explicitly declared that there was no other source of funding for the assignments in question. APSO is a government agency operating under the aegis of the Department of Foreign Affairs. On June 16th and 17th 1997, UCLAF, the European Commission service responsible for the investigation of fraud and other irregularities, carried out, in conjunction with ECHO, an audit of GOAL's records in relation to personnel assignments in Angola. The results of this audit are not yet available.
Because of its own concerns in relation to the lack of adequate financial reporting from GOAL, which has received approximately £1.5 million per annum in recent years, and the apparent evidence of "double-funding" of assignments in Angola, the Department considered it necessary to arrange for an independent audit by a firm of accountants to examine GOAL's use of grants from the Department. On June 25th last, GOAL agreed to such an audit. At the request of GOAL, the audit was scheduled to begin on July 15th to coincide with the completion of GOAL's own audit. However, when the independent audit team attempted to commence the audit, GOAL refused access to the relevant records. The aim of the independent audit was to confirm that:
. payments to GOAL in 1995 and 1996 have been used for the purposes for which they were granted;
. there has been no double funding of projects;
. GOAL has appropriate procedures to ensure that funds received are properly used.
As a result of GOAL's refusal to co-operate with this audit, the Department has not been able to satisfy itself about the use of public funds disbursed to GOAL. It should be stressed that the accountability requirements laid down by the Department apply to all Non-Govermental Organisations (NGOs). What is unusual and unacceptable is GOAL's failure to comply with the Department's reasonable requests.
I should make clear that the current suspension of funding for GOAL does not mean that there is no Irish contribution to the needs of the areas in which GOAL is working. On the contrary, significant support continues to be channelled through other NGOs and international organisations.
The Department has had a long-standing relationship with GOAL and values the work it has done over the years. The Department's actions are governed solely by public accountability concerns. Any suggestions to the contrary are baseless. The Department would wish to restore funding as soon as it can and continues to press GOAL to facilitate an independent audit as a means of resolving the present difficulties. Yours, etc., DANIEL MULHALL, Press Counsellor, Department of Foreign Affairs, Dublin 2.