Eric J. Byrne
Ceist:50 Mr. E. Byrne asked the Minister for Social Welfare the plans, if any, he has for the further expansion of the community development programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13044/96]
Written Answers. - Community Development Programme.
Under the community development programme, CDP, funding is provided towards the staffing and equipping of local resource centres which provide a focal point for community development activities in an area and to other specialised community development projects.
The programme was established in 1990 when 15 projects were funded at a cost of £0.522 million. It was expanded in the following years during the terms of office of my predecessors, Deputies McCreevy and Woods, and by the end of 1994 included a total of 47 projects with a budget of £2.2 million. Sixty-three projects have signed funding contracts with my Department and a further 17 are in the pipeline. In addition, funding is provided for eight support agencies, five island development associations and ten family resource centres. The budget for the programme this year is £4.46 million.
I am committed to further expansion of the programme to meet the needs of the many disadvantaged local communities and groups that could benefit greatly from the support and resources available under it. To this end, I am in the process of establishing an expert group to advise me on the inclusion of new projects. It will have a role in advising on new applications. It will also have the task of assisting my Department in drawing up a list of 30 new areas throughout the State to be proactively targeted for inclusion in the programme over the next three years. The 30 areas involved will be identified on the basis of: baseline studies and mapping exercises which indicate geographical areas of need and other sources of information on poverty indicators to identify greatest need among communities of interest; advice on priorities and prospects within regions obtained from local support agencies and the Department's regional offices; and advice on areas and groups to be targeted from ADM, the Combat Poverty Agency, etc.