Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 February 2018
111. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the estimated cost associated with initiatives aimed at increasing female participation in the Defence Forces; the funding allocated to initiatives aimed at improving the female participation rate in the Defence Forces. [8268/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraWithin the Defence Forces, the budget allocated for recruitment does not ring fence funding for initiatives aimed exclusively at women. The general recruitment campaigns target both men and women and they succeed in portraying the DF as a career for women by showing existing female members of the Defence Forces in their everyday roles.
However special consideration is paid to women as a target group for recruitment. Within the general recruitment framework, there are specific initiatives which focus on potential female recruits such as female-focused advertising, creation of female-specific recruitment videos, visits to all-female schools and targeted social media advertising.
Since 2016, some €180,000 has been spent on such female focused recruitment. In each of the two general service recruitment campaigns conducted in 2017, approximately 13% of the applicants were female.
The Government is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for men and women throughout the Defence Forces and to the full participation by women in all aspects of Defence Forces activities.
