Your support has improved the lives of 2.9m people

The figures were released this week in Trócaire’s Annual Report which showed that the scale of our work increased in 2018/19.

Trócaire thanked the public for donations of €23.2m – donations that change the lives of some of the poorest people in the world.

The Lenten campaign remains Trócaire’s largest fundraiser, generating €7.6m. Last year, €2.3m was raised during our Christmas appeal as people responded to conflicts affecting families in countries such as Yemen and South Sudan. This was one of our strongest Christmas campaigns in our history and reflects an increase of almost 10% on 2017.

Trócaire also received an additional €45.8m in grants from institutional donors, the most ever received through institutional donors. The Irish Government remains Trócaire’s largest institutional donor, with Irish Aid providing €21.5m to Trócaire. The UK Government was the organisation’s second largest institutional donor, with €3.1m provided through the Department for International Development (DFID).

Of the 2.9 million people supported last year, 1.9 million people received humanitarian support, while 496,000 were supported to improve their access to land and water. A further 272,000 people were assisted by the organisation’s Women’s Empowerment programme, while 207,000 people received human rights support.

Trócaire provided support to people in 27 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. In terms of number of people supported, Trócaire’s largest programmes last year were in Ethiopia, Sudan and Kenya.

The organisation also reported a number of successful advocacy campaigns during the last year, which included helping to secure historic court judgements in Guatemala which dated back to crimes committed during the genocide of indigenous communities in the 1980s.

In Ireland, a two-year campaign by Trócaire and other organisations, resulted in a landmark decision by the Irish Government to become the first state in the world to withdraw its investment in the fossil fuel industry. This is an important action for Ireland to take in its effort to tackle climate change as its impact becomes even more stark – especially on the communities where Trócaire works around the world.

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“The generosity of the Irish public continues to leave an enormous footprint across the world,” said Trócaire’s Caoimhe de Barra. “Trócaire works with local partners so that we can reach as many vulnerable people as possible. We are thankful to have been able to help improve the lives of 2.9m people facing poverty and injustices. People across Ireland have continued to show incredible generosity towards our work over the last year. We are enormously grateful for the support of the Irish public and our ongoing partnership with Irish Aid.”

Despite many positive developments, Caoimhe warned there has been a deterioration in human rights standards in many countries.

“Trócaire remains steadfast in the promotion and protection of social justice and rights for the most vulnerable people worldwide, and the need for this work has never been more relevant” she said.

“The commitment of the Irish public to social justice is astounding. I hope Ireland will continue to help us champion human rights, including the right of people and organisations to mobilise peacefully and speak out against injustice. It is a characteristic for which we are known around the world and one we should all take enormous pride in.”

You can download the report here.