Irish Aid programme gets a clean bill of health

THE Dáil’s spending watchdog gave the Government’s overseas aid programme a clean bill of health yesterday, saying it had found no evidence of theft or fraud.

However, the Public Accounts Committee, which monitors public spending, did raise concerns about red tape holding up the delivery of funds as well the amount of money being spent on administration.

Last year, the overseas aid programme, known as Irish Aid, delivered €813 million in funding to developing countries, most in Africa. The money goes directly to governments in these countries or, where there are fears of governmental corruption, to individual programmes or non-governmental organisations.