Where is Ireland's IDS or ODI?

Obviously Ireland is very well placed to provide leadership, guidance and innovation for international development issues. We have a major donor programme and status, active national NGO community with extensive links to partners in the global south and a range of universities and institutes doing good work in many areas releated to development policy and practice. Ireland is also well placed to provide an alternative perspective to international development having shared many similar experiences - colonisation, famine, migration - to less wealthy countries in the south. I spent the best part of the day wading through the considerable amount of information on the internet in relation to Ireland's international development programme, including research and teaching. Starting out with Irish Aid and working through Irish NGOs to universities and development education teaching it took up the best part of 6 hours. But at the end of it all it was hard to get a handle on who was doing what, or where 'centres of expertise' might exist. Where would I go for information on good governance, citizenship, environment sustainability, gender, aid effectiveness etc.? Where is the one-stop shop for information and knowledge on Irish development which provides the analysis of Ireland's development programmes and policies?

When I was working overseas in development in capacity building, teaching and researching in sustainable agriculture and rural development, and as an English speaker, my first point of contact for up-to-date and innovative information on policy and practice in many of these areas was the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), Overseas Development Institute (ODI) or the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). These institutes and think-tanks, working cross-sectorally, are one-stop information shops with a high profile and reputation for excellence among development workers overseas. They provide excellent analysis, examples of good practice and very often the tools and resources to improve implementation and practice. These are portals that can put you in touch with relevant information and expertise in a matter of seconds. These links run wide and deep to draw out the best of information and expertise that exists within a wide range of partner organisations. So where are their counterparts in Ireland? Who would qualify as the relevant independent think tank on development issues in Ireland? Who provides the research and policy analysis that drives Ireland's aid programme? Who is responsible for pulling all this information together and communicating it to the relevant individuals and organisations?