International Fund for Ireland

The International Fund for Ireland was established in the wake of the Anglo-Irish Agreement (AIA). The fund was designed to support economic developments in Northern Ireland and the border counties in the Republic of Ireland. The money for the fund was donated by the United States of America (which has given the bulk of the money), Canada, New Zealand and, since 1988, the European Community Commission. The IFI is managed by a board who produce annual reports of the way in which money is spent. While the fund was welcomed by Nationalists it was initially criticised by Unionists as an attempt to bribe them into accepting the AIA. Since then a number of Unionists and Unionist groups have accepted funding from the IFI.