The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) is a key capital investment scheme which directly supports the objectives of Our Rural Future and the Town Centre First policy.
I announced the fifth RRDF Category 1 call for applications last November, with a focus on revitalising our rural towns and villages through planned and sustainable regeneration that will drive greater economic activity and footfall, address vacancy and dereliction and ensure the re-use of heritage and other existing buildings. The call closed on the 8th February 2024. My Department received 60 applications to this call, seeking funding of over €334 million.
The application process for the Fund is highly competitive in nature. Applications are currently being assessed by my Department under the oversight of the Project Advisory Board, comprised of representatives from key Government Departments and independent experts. Once the assessment process is complete, my Department will prepare a report setting out recommended projects. My role as Minister will be to consider that report and make final decisions in relation to the allocation of funding.
I expect to be in a position to announce the successful projects before the end of the second quarter of 2024. The level of funding will be confirmed as part of the announcement based on the quality of the applications and in the context of the available budget in the coming years.
Since the RRDF was established in 2018, 215 projects have been approved for funding of €414 million. To date, €175 million of funding has been utilised.Projects supported by the RRDF have experienced delays due to the impact of COVID-19, supply chain issues and inflation, but in spite of these challenges strong progress is now being made with 40 large scale projects worth €104 million completed. I have officially opened many RRDF projects in counties across Ireland and I have seen first hand the huge impact that these projects are making to communities. Delivery is ramping up and there is a very strong pipeline of projects currently being progressed with a further 35 large scale projects worth €187 million currently on-site and under construction.
I am committed to ensuring that the RRDF can continue to support high quality and transformational projects across rural Ireland in line with the objectives of Our Rural Future.
