Public Sector Duty: An Assessment of Our Human Rights and Equality Issues, 2026-2029

The mission of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is to serve Ireland, promote our values and interests abroad, and to provide the Government with the capabilities and influence to ensure that Ireland derives the maximum benefit from all areas of its external engagement.

As a public body, the Department is committed to fully meeting our obligations under the Public Sector Duty. We will continue to work to eliminate discrimination, promote equality of opportunity, and protect the human rights of our staff, customers, service users and everyone affected by our policies and plans. While this is the first full Public Sector Duty assessment of human rights and equality issues, DFAT has reported on actions taken within the context of the Duty in annual reports in recent years.

We are committed to ensuring that equality and human rights considerations are central to how we carry out our work on a daily basis. We are committed to the highest standards of service to all our customers, as set out in our Customer Charter. We aim for an open and consultative approach to policy making in general and specifically work to protect and advance global human rights standards internationally. Our Gender Equality Diversity and Inclusion Policy and Action Plans drive efforts to promote and maintain a culture of respect, equality and inclusion within the Department, which in turn benefits those we serve.

Respect for and the promotion of human rights is a cornerstone of Irish foreign policy. Our international development programme aims to reach the furthest behind first, by reducing poverty, hunger and humanitarian need, promoting gender equality and strengthening governance. By supporting long-term development and providing humanitarian assistance in over eighty countries on behalf of the Irish people, we are helping to build better futures for some of the world's poorest communities.

This assessment provides a strategic framework for understanding, addressing and protecting the human rights and equality needs of our staff and diverse customer base. Through consultations across the Department, we have considered DFAT functions in the round. This assessment also looked at our policy development, consultation and engagement in a new way through the prism of the Duty. An action plan developed on foot of this assessment, which identifies gaps to be addressed, is at Annex I. This assessment sets out how we will integrate the Duty into the DFAT strategic management cycle. This will ensure we are proactively addressing issues, including as a response to stakeholder consultation, supporting and training staff and reporting on our approaches, as is required.