Dáil Éireann Debate, Friday - 6 September 2019
1760. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the status of the recently published strategy Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities: A Five-Year Strategy to Support the Community and Voluntary sector in Ireland, 2019-2024; the timeline for the delivery of each action under the strategy in tabular form; and the supports available to support the community and voluntary sector. [36892/19]
View answerI recently launched “Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities: a Five-Year Strategy to Support the Community and Voluntary sector in Ireland 2019-2024”. The Strategy sets a general direction of travel for Government policy in relation to community development, local development and the community and voluntary sectors for the next five years and beyond. It also copper-fastens the renewed relationship and partnership between Government and the community and voluntary sectors which has developed during the course of its preparation.
The Strategy will be implemented in partnership with sectoral stakeholders over the strategy period and beyond. The implementation will be supported by the Cross Sectoral Group on Local Development and Community Development with periodic progress reports provided to the relevant Government Cabinet Committee. Responsibility for implementing actions will rest, in many cases, with Government and my Department will work collaboratively with both relevant Government Departments and sectoral stakeholders to scope, develop and implement cross cutting actions.
The Strategy will entail far reaching changes across Government and the community and voluntary sector and will require an incremental building of supports over the strategy period and beyond. This will be the case particularly for those actions requiring larger scale sustained funding support. In this context actions are grouped into three categories;
Short Term To be initiated as soon as possible and completed by 2021
Medium Term To be initiated on a phased basis and completed by 2023
Long Term To be progressed early in the strategy period and will continue to be developed and built upon beyond 2023.
The timeline for the delivery of each individual action under the Strategy is set out in tabular form in the strategy document on pages 24 – 31. The strategy can be found on my department’s website at the following link:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/d8fa3a-sustainable-inclusive-and-empowered-communities-a-five-year-strategy/.
