Deirdre Clune
Question:243 Ms Clune asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the progress, if any, Ireland has made towards achieving the commitments it agreed in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. [17789/97]
Written Answers. - Earth Summit.
Deirdre Clune
Question:244 Ms Clune asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the commitments, if any, Ireland made at the Rio de Janeiro conference in 1992. [17790/97]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 243 and 244 together.
The main outcomes of the Earth Summit, Rio de Janeiro, June 1992, were: the Rio Declaration; Agenda 21 — a framework programme for the pursuit of sustainable development worldwide; framework convention on climate change; convention on biological diversity; and convention on desertification.
Since 1992 Ireland has, in pursuit of the commitments entered into at the Earth Summit, adopted a widely based approach to the implementation of Agenda 21 and towards the promotion and achievement of sustainable development. This approach is reflected in a range of national plans/statements, notably the National Development Plan, 1994-99 and the National Sustainable Development Strategy published in April 1997. The momentum towards fuller integration of environmental considerations into other policies, as a mechanism for sustainable development, has intensified at many levels — institutional, regulatory, consultative and sectoral and is now a key component of Government policy and an integral consideration in Ireland's economic development.
In addition, Ireland has ratified and is implementing the climate change, biological diversity and desertification conventions and has also joined the global environmental facility to which it is contributing £1.64 million over four years.
In line with the Rio outcomes, Ireland has increased its overseas development assistance (ODA) expenditure from £40 million — 0.16 per cent of GNP in 1992 to £122 million — a projected 0.3 per cent of GNP in 1997. The Government is committed to making steady progress towards the UN target figure of 0.7 per cent of GNP and, specifically, to having Irish aid reach 0.45 per cent of GNP by 2002.