Vol. 413 No. 1
22 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Labour if he will present an interim report on the pilot projects on area-based response to long term unemployment outlined in the Programme for Economic and Social Progress; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Companies, or area based partnerships, representative of local community interests, public agencies and the social partners have been set up to co-ordinate the response in 11 of the 12 pilot areas. In the case of Limerick city, it has been agreed that the existing EC Poverty 3 Organisation, Paul, be expanded to include social partners on its board and that it re-prioritise its work to take cognisance of Programme for Economic and Social Progress.
The national co-ordinating team, acting on behalf of the Central Review Committee in relation to the establishment of the area based partnerships, submitted a report in the context of the bilateral discussions taking place with the social partners on the review of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress. The report contained guidelines for partnerships. Copies of these guidelines were issued to partnerships and supplied to the Oireachtas Library.
Paragraph 5 of section VII of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress stated that the pilot projects will be reviewed before end 1991. The Central Review Committee have assigned responsibility for the implementation of the review and evaluation of the area based partnerships in 1991 to the Combat Poverty Agency. This review and evaluation process involves three key tasks: preparation of partnerships' reports on activities in 1991; review of the processes involved in setting up the partnerships in 1991; and design of a model for assessing the impact and effectiveness of the partnerships in 1991.
The agency, which is working with the partnerships on the review, is expected to submit a report to the Central Review Committee early in January 1992. It is proposed that, on the basis of that review, satisfactory models of partnerships will be progressively extended nationwide by 1994, as resources become available from a growing economy.
