Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 22 May 2012
136 Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on whether the advancement of global free market policies is the best route to African development. [25358/12]
Amharc ar fhreagra137 Deputy Jonathan O’Brien asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade in view of the new focus on convergence between the areas of trade and development, his plans to invest more resources into the combined area of work. [25349/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 136 and 137 together.
The Government's aid programme, and our development policy, are central to Ireland's foreign policy. Our programme is recognised internationally for its focus on the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, for its effectiveness in delivering development results in some of the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa and for its partnership approach. We can be proud of the role Ireland has played in helping countries previously mired in poverty to make progress across the Millennium Development Goals. Africa is now a changing continent, with many countries achieving growth rates of over 5 per cent annually over the past decade. However, extreme poverty and hunger persist in some areas, and we have seen in recent times the devastating effect of humanitarian emergencies in the Horn of Africa and in the Sahel region. The Africa Strategy of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade responds to the complexity of the African continent today. The Government is now building a more coherent approach to promoting Ireland's relations with Africa, based on the progress enabled by Official Development Assistance and creating new links in the areas of development, political relations and the promotion of economic and trade opportunities.
As Minister with responsibility for trade and development, I know that the provision of aid is only one element in the promotion of inclusive economic growth. Increased participation by developing nations in world trade has real potential to as an engine for economic growth, for equitable income distribution and for the elimination of extreme poverty. It generates revenues and employment, reduces prices on essential goods, and promotes technology transfer and increased productivity. I am determined that Ireland's aid programme will remain focused on the fight against poverty and hunger and that it will remain untied. However, it is in the interests of African countries and of Ireland that we prepare for expanded ties with African countries as they achieve greater economic and social development. I look forward to relationships with African countries which have moved away from aid dependency, which will involve strengthened trade, investment, tourism and people-to people links. This process will of course take time, and progress will be faster in some African countries than in others.
Ireland and our EU partners strongly support the multilateral rules-based trading system which is the central goal of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). At times of global economic challenge we need a WTO that is robust enough to apply transparent trade rules for the benefit of all and ensures that more trade opportunities are opened up for developing nations. We recognise that developing countries need support in order to participate fully in the WTO and to take advantage of global market opportunities. Ireland is playing its part in this process, including through the provision of financial support to the WTO's programme of technical assistance and training, and to bodies such as the Advisory Centre on WTO Law and the International Trade Centre. Last year, we provided over €2 million in such assistance for developing countries.
The Government also strongly supports the carefully differentiated approach by the European Union to its engagement on trade with developing countries in Africa. EU trade policy is helping the poorest economies by providing generous unilateral trade preferences through the Generalised System of Preferences Scheme. This includes the ‘Everything but Arms' scheme which provides duty-free and quota-free access for goods from Least Developed Countries. The EU is also negotiating Economic Partnership Agreements with the African, Caribbean and Pacific States, and Ireland is working with our partners to ensure that the negotiations lead to Agreements which will serve the development needs of African countries, based on their own poverty reduction programmes.
