Galway County Council

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THE NATIONAL ANTI-POVERTY STRATEGY(NAPS)

Following the United Nations Social Summit in Copenhagen in 1995, the Irish Government decided to draw up what became the National Anti-Poverty Strategy. NAPS were launched in 1997 and it was the first strategic attempt by the Irish Government to tackle poverty in the medium to long terms. It was based on the principles on prioritising poverty and its elimination and involved those directly affected by poverty in that elimination. It spoke about tackling, not just the symptoms of poverty but the underlying causes of poverty and about the fact that all government departments would have a role in the implementation of NAPS.

It was published in a climate of substantial economic growth and falling levels of unemployment. However, NAPS recognised that a rising tide does not lift all boats and that there were a substantial number of people still living in poverty despite the economic boom.

NAPS also recognised that an understanding of poverty in Ireland in the late 1990's meant adopting a relative definition of poverty. In other words that people could be considered to be living in poverty relative to what was considered the norm in Irish society. NAPS also recognised that the term poverty was not inclusive of all those experiencing disadvantage and so included the term social exclusion in the strategy. The notion of social exclusion relates to barriers to participation such as discrimination; physical barriers such as lack of transport or accessible amenities; people lacking in the skills required to fully participate in society or other barriers to full participation in society.

NAPS measured the national extent of poverty mostly based on information from an ESRI survey 'Poverty in the 1990's: evidence from the 1994 Living in Ireland Survey'. This survey estimated that 34% of the population were living on disposable incomes below 60% of the national average. NAPS then identified those groups of people who account for a substantial proportion of those living in poverty and those who may be subject to a high risk of poverty. The groups identified as being at greatest risk of poverty were:

It was also recognised that though people living in poverty can be found anywhere, there are certain areas where large clusters of people living in poverty can be found. Three such areas were identified:

NAPS also examined the causes of poverty and concluded that unemployment, particularly long-term unemployment, is one of the fundamental causes of poverty. In addition, the education system, the tax system and the social welfare system, if not targeted at those most in need, could become contributing factors. NAPS outlined three very important factors in the way it was to address poverty. Firstly, addressing poverty needs to be based on an understanding of the multidimensional nature of poverty.

The need to build responsibility for tackling poverty into the strategic objectives of all government departments and agencies was recognised. Secondly, addressing poverty involves tackling the deep-seated underlying structural inequalities that create and perpetuate it. Thirdly, there is a need to give particular attention to a number of key areas if any significant advance on the tackling of poverty is to be achieved. These were identified as follows:

In 2000, Planning For a More Inclusive Society: An Initial Assessment of the National Anti-Poverty Strategy was published by the Combat Poverty Agency. This assessment, agreed by the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness, reviewed the progress of NAPS from 1997 to the end of 1999.

Based on this, Building an Inclusive Society was launched, which was essentially an updated version of NAPS. This National Anti Poverty Strategy "Building an Inclusive Society" was launched in February 2002. The national Action plan set out to "reduce substantially and, ideally, eliminate poverty in Ireland and to build a socially inclusive society". It looked at the notion of consistent poverty, which was defined as being below 50-60% of average disposable income and experiencing enforced basic deprivation. The themes to be addressed were also updated and are now:

Cross-Cutting Themes:

The key target set out in Building an Inclusive Society is to:

It proposes six ways that social inclusion can be achieved;

Building an Inclusive Society also recommended that local authorities need to take a lead role in incorporating anti poverty strategies into their day to day activities e.g. it recommended that all City/County Development Plans have a specific anti-poverty focus.

The strategy contains a specific recommendation that Local Authorities 'develop appropriate social inclusion strategies at local level'. In addition, a range of recent policy and legislative instruments outline the role of Local Authorities in addressing issues of social inclusion and poverty at local level. The challenge being confronted is to determine the Councils contribution not just in combating social exclusion, but the ways in which it reinforces social inclusion, builds citizenship and social capital. Current reform processes have led to significant change within Local Government, involving new demands, new roles and new structures.

At another level, the 'National Anti Poverty Strategy" (NAPS) notes the local government sector as instrumental in targeting resources to those most in need. It contains a series of key targets for a range of groups and issues, and gives local authorities the responsibility for advancing these at local level. It also requires local authorities to consider the impact of their policies on poverty and to devise responses to poverty and social exclusion as part of their work-i.e. It requires local authorities to poverty proof.