Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 16 January 2013
17. Deputy John Browne asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the steps he has taken to address procedures in distributing aid to Uganda; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1563/13]
View answer24. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the date on which the Ugandan Auditor General is expected to finish his report into the misappropriation of €4 million of aid given by Irish Aid; and if officials or those from an accounting background in his Department will be travelling to Uganda in connection with the case in the coming months. [1680/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 17 and 24 together.
As the Deputies know I was deeply concerned about the misappropriation of €4 million of Irish development funding in Uganda, which came to light last October. Ireland has always made it abundantly clear that we have no tolerance for fraud or any other form of financial irregularity in relation to our development programme. I immediately suspended €16 million of Irish development assistance which was due to be channelled through the Government of Uganda systems in 2012 and I initiated an investigation into the misappropriation of funds by the Ugandan Office of the Prime Minister which was undertaken by a team from the Evaluation and Audit Unit of my Department. Their report has been made public and is available on my Department’s website.
The Deputies will be aware that the Government of Uganda has accepted full responsibility for the misappropriation of Irish development funds and full restitution of the funds has now taken place. I welcome this action which was brought about after intensive dialogue with the Ugandan Government at a high level and is a sign of the strong partnership which has been built with Uganda over many years. This partnership enables very strong and frank dialogue on a wide range of issues including development, human rights and corruption.
The initial report of the Special Investigation by the Auditor General of Uganda into the misappropriation of €4 million of Irish Aid, and other donor funds intended for financing of the Peace and Recovery Development Plan (PRDP) was published in October 2012. The Auditor General will now carry out further detailed follow up assessments and audits in relation to the PRDP, the Office of the Prime Minister, the Treasury Department and on the Government’s Financial Management System. Current expectations are that this work will be completed by mid 2013. My Department will support the Auditor General in this important work.
I am committed to ensuring that we learn from what has occurred in Uganda to further strengthen our systems of risk identification and management as well as monitoring and audit to minimise the potential for the misuse of funds in the future. I fully accept the recommendations set out in the Report of the Evaluation and Audit team and have directed that they should be implemented.
The Director General of Irish Aid, together with other officials, will travel to Uganda shortly to review proposals and appropriate management arrangements for a future programme. Any such programme will build on the previous valuable contribution made by Ireland towards improving the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in the world, but must provide assurance and strong accountability to the Irish taxpayer. The Evaluation and Audit Unit of my Department will also continue to follow up on the important work they have already undertaken in Uganda, with the next audit visit by this Unit to take place in the coming weeks.
Following the exposure of the misappropriation of funds in Uganda, Ambassadors in overseas missions that manage Irish Aid bilateral programmes were asked to undertake a full review of their management and risk assessment systems to ensure that any weaknesses are dealt with. This review has been completed and the Secretary General of my Department will meet with all of the Heads of Mission in February to underline the importance of managing risk around Irish development funding.
