Funding worth almost £370k for projects in Portadown plus Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon area backed by International Fund for Ireland

Politics in Action and Portadown College are the chief beneficiaries with £157,636 to help support greater links between the Co Armagh town and Milford in Co Donegal.

-

-

Edgarstown Residents Association is to get funding of £112,133 to help guide 15 young people from paths which might lead to criminality or paramilitarism.

Also getting funding is Co Armagh Community Development which has been earmarked £98,582 which aims to help promote North South collaboration between the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon areas and the Clones area of Monaghan.

The funding from the International Fund for Ireland (IFI) enables peacebuilding efforts within some of the most marginalised communities who continue to live with the long-term impact of The Troubles.

A spokesperson for the IFI said: “The latest allocations will offer critical support at a grassroots level as many face the realities of austerity cuts and increasing polarization within communities. Funding has been awarded across the Peace Impact Programme (PIP), Personal Youth Development Programme (PYDP) and Communities in Partnership Programme (CIPP).”

Edgarstown Residents Association will work for 18 months to deliver the Evolve Programme in the Portadown area. The programme will target 15 ‘disengaged young people, with the aim of breaking the negative pathway which may lead them to criminality and paramilitarism, through the delivery of good relations and personal development, skills and social development and education and employability training’.

Portadown College will support lead partner Politics in Action in a 16 month cross-border ‘Poreto for Progression Project’, to extend and expand on the work already established in the current project by supporting the development of even deeper links between Loreto Community School, and more broadly the two towns of Milford and Portadown.

County Armagh Community Development will lead a project with Clones Family Resource Centre Ltd for 15 months and deliver the cross-border ‘Connect2Gether Project’, in the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council locale and Clones town and surrounding areas. The project aims to help promote North-South collaboration and understanding across a range of demographics, through a programme of activities and providing opportunities for participants from both sides of the border to share their lived experiences and create lasting connections.

IFI Chair Paddy Harte says the support is vital in the current climate; “Projects are working against an incredibly challenging backdrop with recent funding cuts across the community sector and ongoing political instability both threatening to undo the progress that has been made in recent times.

“Communities are struggling with identity and culture issues alongside the legacy of The Troubles. Unfortunately, this vacuum provides an opportunity for paramilitary influence, recruitment of young people and anti-social behaviour.

“The IFI is committed to supporting those who need interventions most and we are one of the few organisations who are prepared to take those risks and reach those who have yet to receive direct benefit from the Peace Process.”

The Peace Impact Programme (PIP) has received £1,349,511/ €1,524,947 for six projects to deliver sensitive interventions in communities that have not previously, or have only partially, participated in peacebuilding and reconciliation activities. The Personal Youth Development Programme (PYDP), which provides uniquely tailored support for at-risk 16-25year olds, is supporting six projects with £735,109/ €830,673. PYDP aims to improve confidence and personal resilience in young people, helping them develop a better understanding of culture and identity, and grow practical skills to offer better employment opportunities.

Five projects under the Communities in Partnership Programme (CiPP), have been awarded £989,466/€1,118,097 to help build resilience and empower communities to build stronger, meaningful cross-border partnerships.

IFI Chair Paddy Harte continues; “In an important year of reflection around the Good Friday Agreement, we also recognise that the Peace Process has yet to deliver for some communities. We must examine what interventions are required over the next 25 years to make peace inclusive for all.

“Thanks to our international donors we will continue sensitive interventions and provide financial support to those hard-to-reach communities. This is challenging work, but thanks to the IFI, projects now have the means to provide positive leadership, invest in vital resources and community development opportunities to help create a shared future.”

The IFI was set up by the British and Irish Governments as an independent international organisation in 1986. It delivers a range of peace and reconciliation initiatives across Northern Ireland and the southern border counties. It currently supports a total of 50 projects in Northern Ireland and 23 in the southern border counties.

The IFI’s International donors include the British and Irish Governments, Government of the United States of America, European Union, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.