Cllr Albert Doherty ‘delighted’ after parts of Inishowen opened up to Clár funding 

An Inishowen councillor who has long called for additional areas of Inishowen to be opened up to Clár funding has said he is “delighted” that additional electoral divisions in the peninsula have been designated for the funding.

Following a review, the Ballyliffin, Carndonagh, Mintiaghs, Straid, Three Trees and Inch Island electoral divisions have been added.

In an announcement made last week by Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, Dara Calleary, a total  of 24 Donegal divisions have been added to the funding stream by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht.

“I am pleased to announce the 110 new electoral divisions with a population of nearly 150,000 people that are now designated as Clár areas,” the minister said.

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“For the first time in its history, there will be over 1 million people living in parts of Ireland that are eligible to apply for this important funding.”

Sinn Féin Carndonagh councillor Albert Doherty, who has repeatedly highlighted the need for additional Clár funding for parts of north Inishowen, said he was delighted that the electoral divisions have been added to the 2026 programme.

“I have used two council terms to keep highlighting that there should be access to Clár funding for many rural areas,” he said. 

He said some clarity is needed on whether the Glentogher area is included.

 “I am delighted, I preserved, I  got assistance from councillors when I submitted motions, I got assistance from directors [in Donegal County Council] when I posed questions and of course PQs (parliamentary questions) submitted by DeputyMac Lochlainn on the need to increase eligibility in Clár areas, was continuous.” 

The Clár (Ceantair Laga Árd-Riachtanais) programme provides funding for small scale projects in designated rural areas that have experienced significant levels of de-population. There are now designated areas in all counties except Dublin.

The Clár review was completed by the All-Island Research Observatory in Maynooth University. Under the methodology applied, non-Clár Electoral Division (EDs) were identified as potential candidates for inclusion where they contained “Small Areas” classified as being either ‘disadvantaged’, ‘very disadvantaged’ or ‘extremely disadvantaged’ on the Pobal HP Deprivation Index and where the same ED also contained “Small Areas” classed as being ‘highly rural/remote areas’ as defined by the CSO Urban and Rural Life in Ireland classification.

Under the Clár programme, schools, community and voluntary groups and local development companies  can apply to local authorities for funding. Local authorities can apply if they have clearly demonstrated partnership with a community organisation.

Welcoming the inclusion of the 24 Donegal divisions, Donegal minister of state, Charlie McConalogue, said: “This follows a commitment given in the Programme for Government to carry out a comprehensive review of the eligibility criteria of Clár with a view to expanding the programme to rural areas which were previously ineligible.

“The 2026 Clár programme, with an increased budget of €12 million, is now open for applications and I would encourage community groups in Donegal that are eligible to make an application. For the first time over one million people are now eligible for support in CLÁR areas," the Minister of State for Sport and Postal Policy commented.