Clare Daly
Ceist:269. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if his Department has a service level agreement with the new communities partnership. [7718/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 19 February 2019
Ceisteanna (269)
Freagraí scríofa
My Department has three grant agreements with the New Communities Partnership, which is an national network of immigrant-led groups.
In September 2016 an invitation issued to organisations, by way of an open call, to submit proposals to receive funding for projects related to the Integration and Employment of Migrants. New Communities Partnership was one of five projects who were successful in securing grant funding. A Grant Agreement is in place for an award of €329,045 over a four-year term from 29th March 2017 to 28th March 2021. The Grant Agreement sets out the terms and conditions related to the grant and includes details about eligible expenditure, reporting requirements, payment schedule, budget, operations plan, etc. The grant is 50% co-financed by the Department of Justice and Equality and 50% by the European Social Fund. To date, €197,427 has been paid to New Communities Partnership under this grant award.
The grant is to support New Communities Partnership’s ‘Migrant Access Programme’ which provides employment training and supports for unemployed/under-employed migrants in Ireland. The supports include assessment of needs for participants and training courses and workshops to create and upskill their capability to access the labour market.
The Department of Justice and Equality is a beneficiary of funding from the European Social Fund (ESF) and administers funding for the Programme for Employment, Inclusion and Learning (PEIL) 2014-20. This programme has a number of actions and in this case Action 2.7 related to the Integration and Employment of Migrants. The funding awarded to New Communities partnership is subject to EU rules regarding the management of funds and its operations and finances are closely monitored by the Department in accordance with the Grant Agreement.
The other two grant agreements with the New Communities Partnership are as follows:
The organisation received €117,000 in 2017 for a 3 year project aimed at youth integration, as part of National Funding to Promote the Integration of Immigrants, and funding of €5,000 allocated under the Communities Integration Fund in 2018, for a Cork city-based integration programme. Both the National Funding to Promote the Integration of Migrants and the Communities Integration Fund are administered by the Office for the Promotion of Migrant Integration within my Department, with awards made following an open competitive process.
Question No. 270 answered with Question No. 268.