Minister Brophy hosts final online Town Hall on new Irish Aid Development Education Strategy

The Minister for Overseas Development Aid and the Diaspora, Colm Brophy TD, today led the third of three online Town Hall meetings which will help shape a new Irish Aid strategy for greater public engagement on such global issues as climate change, migration and hunger.

Minister Brophy said:

"The pandemic has reminded us all of the interconnectedness of life in Ireland with life elsewhere. Issues such as responding to COVID-19, or addressing climate change, hunger, injustice and inequality require global action, which will in turn shape our future. Given that we all have a stakein the future, I want to bring as many people as possible into conversations about the issues, so as to help shape Ireland’s response to these challenges.

"That is why I am developing a new strategy for Irish Aid’s engagement with the public, an opportunity to reimagine, rejuvenate and refresh our work on global citizenship and development education. This new strategy will help create a framework for greater public engagement on global issues which impact on us today and tomorrow."

Approximately 80 people attended the event, bringing to 300 the total number of people who attended one of the Town Halls over the last month. This included members of the public and representatives of adult, community and youth groups, third level institutions, schools, NGOs and government departments.

The Irish Aid Global Citizenship Education strategy is due to be finalised by the end of the summer and today’s meeting was an important step in hearing the public’s views. The strategy will set out how Irish Aid will work with community groups, schools, colleges and through non-formal education to advance global citizenship education.

Notes

Irish Aid, at the Department of Foreign Affairs, is developing a new strategy for global citizenship education for the period 2021- 2024. The new strategy will be launched in mid-2021. Today’s town hall is the last in a series of three consultations which have taken place in March and April, including a youth consultation on 7th April organised in partnership with the National Youth Council of Ireland. A written consultation process is also a key part of the process.

Irish Aid defines global citizenship education as a life-long education process which aims to increase public awareness and understanding of the rapidly changing, interdependent and unequal world in which we live.