12 Nov 2013, 16:18
Officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will appear before the Joint Oireachtas Committee tomorrow to consider an EU proposal to progress poverty eradication and sustainable development globally after 2015.
12 November 2013
The European Commission Communication, COM (2013) 531, sets out to develop a common approach among Member States to engage with the international discussion on financing the post-2015 development agenda. The Department Officials will discuss the theme Beyond 2015: towards a comprehensive and integrated approach to poverty eradication and sustainable development.
Chairman of the Committee Pat Breen TD says: “The UN’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have dominated the global development agenda since 2000. Three of the eight MDGs have been reached. Both the extreme poverty rate and the proportion of people without access to clean drinking water have been halved. The lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers have been significantly improved. While the reaching of these goals is to be warmly welcomed, progress has been spread unevenly. Debates have intensified at international fora on what might succeed the MDGs after their 2015 target dates.
“At tomorrow’s meeting, we will hear from Department Officials on how Ireland has been using its enviable reputation in the area to influence the wider European Union, which is collectively the world’s largest donor. Ireland’s EU Presidency prioritised the development of a coordinated, coherent and credible EU position in advance of UN discussions on development priorities post 2015. We look forward to assessing how Ireland can continue to progress the goals of poverty eradication and sustainable development at EU level for the benefit of the world’s poorest.”
The meeting takes place at 2:30 pm tomorrow Wednesday 13 November in Committee Room 1, LH 2000 and can be viewed online here.
Media enquiries to:
Paul Hand,
Communications Unit,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2
P: +3531 618 4484
M: +353 87 694 9926
Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade
Deputies
Pat Breen, Fine Gael (Chairman)
Eric Byrne, Labour
Bernard Durkan, Fine Gael (Vice-Chairman)
Seán Crowe, Sinn Féin
Olivia Mitchell, Fine Gael
Gerald Nash, Labour
Dan Neville, Fine Gael
Brendan Smith, Fianna Fáil
Maureen O’Sullivan, Independent
Senators
Deirdre Clune, Fine Gael
Mark Daly, Fianna Fáil
Lorraine Higgins, Labour
Michael Mullins, Fine Gael
David Norris, Independent
Jim Walsh, Fianna Fáil