Ireland fund chief talks of ‘challenging’ year in store
THE new year has been forecast to be “particularly challenging”, with Brexit, the coronavirus pandemic and a number of significant centenaries.
Paddy Harte, chair of the International Fund for Ireland (IFI), said those challenges come on top of ongoing tensions.
However looking back over 2020, he said in many areas the orange and green faded away as communities came together to support each other through Covid.
He also hailed “notable successes” over peace walls in some of the most divided areas of Belfast.
As the Brexit transition period ended on New Year’s Eve, Mr Harte described the new arrangements as “an unknown”.
“It’s important to acknowledge that the border on the island looks like it is not going to
be there, and that is a plus, but there is a bit to go before we know how it will affect communities we work with,” he said.
Meanwhile, the ongoing pandemic is set to have a socio-economic and mental health fall-out, he said, and a number of major dates including the centenary of Northern Ireland approach.
“2021 is the centenary year, we have big commemorations, 50 years since internment, 40 years since the turn out, the NI Census is coming out and discussions that that triggers in terms of border polls etc, and we still have all of the tensions in certain areas around identity, paramilitarism, flags, bonfires, they are still all there.
“2021 is going to be a particularly challenging year — we’re trying to make the best of the lessons we have learned.”
Looking back over 2020, he said a lot of peace-building work undertaken by the groups which the IFI funds had to be postponed.
But he said the pandemic also brought people together.
“The communities responded outstandingly,” he said. “The first thing we noticed was the orange and green disappeared, people were now dealing with something of common concern.
“100,000 food parcels were given out, 30,000 pieces of personal protective equipment was made and delivered. An amazing amount of work was done.”