A total of €100 million in public funds is being distributed by the Irish Government among ten NGOs to support international development programmes, including work focused on gender equality, climate-related initiatives, and more.
The announcement was made this week by Foreign Affairs Minister Helen McEntee, and Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora Neale Richmond.
The ten NGOs to receive funding are Concern Worldwide, Trócaire, GOAL, Christian Aid Ireland, Self Help Africa, Oxfam Ireland, World Vision Ireland, Plan International Ireland, Sightsavers Ireland, and Action Aid Ireland.
“Projects supported by this funding will focus on both immediate humanitarian response and long-term development,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
“Projects will focus on the most vulnerable populations, striving to reach the furthest behind first, and aims to empower local organisations.”
The funding is being channelled through Ireland’s Civil Society Partnership for A Better World (2023–2027), Irish Aid’s principal funding programme for selected Irish international NGOs; in 2025, the scheme was also used to finance rapid-response interventions in crises such as Gaza, Sudan, Myanmar and Somalia.
Under the Donald Trump White House in the US, significant amounts of American funding for foreign NGOs through USAID has been cut on the basis that much of it was deemed by the administration to be fraudulent, frivolous, or otherwise inappropriate.
Without referencing this specifically, Minister Neale Richmond noted in general terms that Ireland’s funding for foreign development work was more important in the context of declining global aid funding.
“At a time when funding for development and humanitarian work is decreasing globally, I am proud that the Government, through Irish Aid, is recommitting its support to the vital work carried out by our NGO partners,” he said.
“This funding will allow our partners to respond quickly when humanitarian disasters strike. It will also allow them to invest in future generations by it funding schools, hospitals, sustainable food production and striving to ensure that women, girls and other minorities have every opportunity in life.”
Meanwhile, Minister Helen McEntee said that Ireland’s work around the world focuses on helping “people left furthest behind”.
“Ireland’s International NGOs have a long-standing reputation when it comes to improving the lives of the world’s most vulnerable people,” she said.
“They deliver essential, life-saving services in the most dire circumstances.
“Ireland’s work around the world is rooted in strengthening human rights, building peace and supporting the people left furthest behind. Our partnerships with NGOs are central to this.
“In a world facing great volatility, the vital work of Ireland’s NGOs, supported by the Government through Irish Aid, offers a glimmer of hope for a better world.”
Notably, the plan is being implemented in forty-five countries across Africa, Latin America, Middle East, Asia, and Oceania.
“Programmes are implemented across a range of sectors, including health and nutrition provision, gender equality, education, climate action, and food systems,” the Department said in a statement.
“The scheme also provides funding to partners responding to chronic humanitarian crises in mainly fragile states, as well as those implementing global citizenship education programmes in Ireland. All partners are receiving specific funding for climate action.”