TRÓCAIRE HAS LAUNCHED an urgent appeal for supporters to return donations from their Trócaire boxes online or over the phone.

The charity warned it has experienced a 60% decline in donations to its Lenten Appeal which it said has put many of its life-saving programmes at risk.

Trócaire’s appeal at Easter raises around €8 million each year. Two-thirds of this money comes from Trócaire boxes distributed through schools and parishes.

Travel and social restrictions, including the closure of schools and parishes, means most boxes have not been returned this year.

Trócaire today warned that unless donations from the boxes are returned, it is facing a massive funding crisis that will impact directly on the 3 million people who rely on its work overseas.

Trócaire CEO Caoimhe de Barra said: “People all over Ireland fill their Trócaire boxes to support the world’s poorest people, but the closure of schools and churches means that support is not getting through. 

“Thousands of boxes are sitting in homes across Ireland. Unless these generous donations are returned, we won’t be able to provide life-saving support to some of the poorest people in the world.

“We are asking our supporters to please ‘make your Trócaire box count’. Please count or estimate what is in your box and donate the equivalent amount online, over the phone or via post. Many parishes have their own local arrangements in place for collecting Trócaire boxes, so people can also contact their local parish to see if it is possible to return their box within social distancing guidelines.”

In addition to its ongoing programmes, Trócaire is also responding to the Covid-19 crisis. The virus is present in all 20 countries where Trócaire provides support. The charity is responding by providing support in all regions, including 11 countries in Africa -  around 100,000 Coronavirus cases have been confirmed on the continent so far.