The Government has committed almost €102 million to the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s fund for the poorest countries at an international pledging conference in Stockholm. This represents an increase of more than 10 per cent on Ireland’s contribution to the last replenishment round in 2016. The successful replenishment of IDA, totalling $82 billion, was supported by contributions from 52 governments.
Minister for Finance and Ireland’s Governor at the World Bank, Paschal Donohoe, T.D., commented,
“Ireland’s increased contribution confirms our committed and continued support for the International Development Association and the world’s poorest and most vulnerable countries. It sends a strong signal of our support for the policy objectives identified under IDA19 which closely align with Ireland’s own international development priorities. Ireland has traditionally had a strong commitment to international development and this contribution to IDA, exceeding €100 million for the first time, reflects the ambition expressed in A Better World: Ireland’s Policy for International Development of reaching the furthest behind first. It also recognises the closer engagement between Ireland and the World Bank in recent years.”
In the previous replenishments for IDA18, Ireland had pledged €90 million. Ireland’s IDA pledge of almost €102 million, which will be paid over 9 years commencing in 2021 will be credited towards the Government’s commitment to increase development spending to 0.7 per cent of Gross National Income by 2030.
ENDS
Note to Editors:
The International Development Agency (IDA) is one of five constituent parts of the World Bank
Group. It is the World Bank’s fund for the world’s poorest and least creditworthy countries. IDA provides financial support on concessional terms and is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 77 poorest countries, 39 of which are in Africa, and is the single largest donor for basic social services in these countries. IDA is funded largely by grant contributions from donors and the IDA replenishment rounds, during which contributors to IDA make their pledges, take place every three years.
The overarching theme of the recently concluded IDA19 is “Ten Years to 2030: Growth, People, Resilience”. Under this replenishment, IDA will respond to the critical funding needs of IDA countries facing the large-scale commitments and challenges of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda. Ireland is deeply committed to the SDGs and appreciates the invaluable role of IDA in assisting the world’s poorest countries accelerate progress on the SDGs. The Special Themes of IDA19, which include climate change, Jobs and Economic Transformation (JET), Gender, Governance and Fragility, Conflict and Violence (FCV), are closely aligned with the objectives of A Better World: Ireland’s Policy for International Development. IDA19 also reflects Ireland’s priorities in relation to Africa, as outlined in the recently published Ireland’s Strategy for Africa to 2025, and our efforts to support Small Island States, as articulated in Ireland’s Strategy for Partnership with Small Island Developing States.