Minister Joe O’Brien welcomes the UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 2024
- Published on: 17 October 2024
- Last updated on: 25 October 2024
Minister of State with responsibility for Social Inclusion, Joe O’Brien TD, has today welcomed the United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This is a global event which will be marked with events to address poverty around the world. It aims to promote understanding and dialogue between people living in poverty and wider society.
The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which is commemorated on October 17th each year, originated in 1987 when a massive gathering in Paris proclaimed poverty as a violation of human rights. This event emphasised the need for collective action to ensure these rights are respected. Since then, people of diverse backgrounds have united annually to express solidarity with those living in poverty and to implement actions to eradicate it.
The theme for 2024 is ‘Breaking Barriers and Building Bridges: Together Towards Equality and Inclusion’. The chosen theme underscores the necessity for partnership and collaborative efforts to eradicate poverty and discrimination, paving the way for a sustainable future where the needs of all are met without compromising the well-being of future generations.
Highlighting the importance of the day, Minister O’Brien said:
“The UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is a day of solidarity, to bring together people from different backgrounds, with different experiences, in their shared commitment to end poverty. Addressing poverty is a constant priority for me and it is crucial we acknowledge that poverty is unacceptable and work together to reduce poverty and ensure nobody is left behind, which is the essence of this year’s theme.”
To mark the day, Minister O’Brien noted that anti-poverty organisations are organising local, regional or national activities to promote awareness of the day, with a range of events due to take place in Tullamore, Longford, Dublin and Mullingar.
One such initiative is a Dublin event taking place from 11am to 12.30pm at the Human Rights and Poverty Stone, by the Famine Statues, Custom House Quay, Dublin 1. It will include speeches and an Opening Address from Minister Joe O’Brien T.D., the Lord Mayor of Dublin and other dignitaries.
While the latest 2023 Survey of Income and Living Conditions shows that consistent poverty is at an all-time low of 3.6% in Ireland the Government is committed to further reducing poverty. Recent budgets have introduced a range of permanent and temporary measures aimed at mitigating poverty. This continued in Budget 2025 which included increases to core social welfare and pension rates, increases in the child support payments (formerly the Increases for Qualified Child) along with lump sum payments to certain welfare recipients, universal energy credits and adjustments to working family payment thresholds.