Details of over €57m worth of funding for youth services have been announced by the Children's Minister Katherine Zappone.
Minister Zappone is meeting with National Youth Organisations at a conference in Dublin today.
Young people across the country are to benefit from the allocation, which represents an increase of €5.5m.
Minister Zappone says the funding will allow for significant increases for existing youth services, the inclusion of communities identified as needing better youth services and the start of the first LGBT National Youth Strategy.
The Department of Children and Youth Affairs say it will be used across a number of areas including:
- A potential increase of up to 5% to all existing youth projects
- All costs associated with the procurement, design and writing of the LGBT Youth Strategy
- Possibility to include organisations providing much needed services to young people and which have not been funded up to now
- Continued funding for four newly-commenced Value for Money sample projects, as well as the capacity to earmark funding for additional projects in 2017
- Re-examination of current funding streams to ensure best outcomes for young people
Announcing the funding, Minister Zappone added: "The 10% increase for services aimed at children and teenagers is welcome and effectively reverses the cuts which had to be endured in recent years.
"Travelling around the country I have been hugely impressed by the impact frontline services are having through youth cafes, sports and vital supports for those young people who need them most.
"Volunteers and staff are transforming young lives and giving many an opportunity to start again.
"This funding must be used to support that existing frontline work and also to identify challenges which are not currently being met."
The allocation for 2016 was €51.89m - an additional €5.5m for 2017 represents a 10% increase for youth services.
