Humanitarian Aid
Dail Éireann — 2026-07-02
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Neale Richmond (FG), Dublin Rathdown

I am very grateful to the Deputy for referring to the very real Irish connection, not just with Democratic Republic of Congo but also with the wider region, including Uganda and neighbouring countries that are often responsible for many of the impacts of these crises, be they conflicts or humanitarian crises. There are over 2,000 Irish citizens in the broader region. Most of them work in the aid sector. Trócaire has a significant presence there. The CEO of Trócaire was due to travel there until very recently. He was in Rwanda during the Easter period. Oxfam has a very real presence in Democratic Republic of Congo as well. It is one of Ireland's largest humanitarian partners outside of our programme countries. Within Irish Aid, we have a very strong history of working in this region.
I referenced the role of Irish peacekeepers - missionaries also played a part - over the period. This is a conflict and a humanitarian disaster that we absolutely will continue to keep to the fore at European level, at bilateral level and, more broadly, through our work with the United Nations.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-07-02/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-10-05T01:00:56+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-02