Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 June 2023
1415. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development her plans for the advancement of the Social Innovation Fund in the future; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28579/23]
View answerAs a partnership between the private sector and Government, Rethink Ireland (formerly Social Innovation Fund Ireland) has been funded from the Dormant Accounts Fund through contractual funding arrangements since its creation in 2013. The business model which these arrangements support is for Government funding to match the philanthropic donations on a 50:50 co-funded basis i.e., every euro raised in philanthropic funding is matched by Government. However, this is subject to budget allocations as part of the estimates process.
The current five year contract between Rethink Ireland and my Department runs from January 2021 to December 2025 and provides match funding to a maximum of €5.5m per annum. It should also be noted that, while my Department provides the majority of its match-funding, Rethink Ireland have also received funding from other Departments and my Department encourages these partnerships.
In total, with philanthropic and Government support, Rethink Ireland has created a €95 million Social Innovation Fund and created 48 individual funds across five key themes of Health, Education, Equality, Social Enterprise, and Climate. These funds have reached 829,425 people and supported 2,700 people into employment.
