Recent international research shows the impact of Covid-19 on people’s attitudes towards development assistance. The British Foreign Policy Group’s (BFPG) major report, the 2021 Annual Survey of UK Public Opinion on Foreign Policy and Global Britain, suggests most British people think foreign aid spending should be stopped or reduced during the pandemic.
#NowMoreThanEver is a campaign to re-enforce the urgent need for Official Development Assistance (ODA) to be maintained and makes the case that ODA is in the national interest to a greater extent than ever before and influence the outcome of Budget 2022 in Ireland. The UK has already brought in foreign aid cuts, cutting the UK's annual foreign aid commitment from 0.7% to 0.5% of gross national income in 2021. Ireland has pledged to donate 0.7% of its GNI by 2030 but continues to donate only around 0.31% presently. In order to honour Ireland’s ODA commitment, Ireland should not cut its ODA spending in the context of a poor economy. In short, Dóchas wants to make the case for continued support for ODA and global solidarity, highlighting its importance now more than ever.