€2.4 million project will gather new public health data to support better policy

Posted on: 25 June 2026

The All-Island Public Health Knowledge Hub (PHKH) project was officially launched in Dundalk, by John O’Dowd, Minister for Finance in Northern Ireland, and Jack Chambers, Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services Reform and Digitalisation in Ireland.

The cross-border initiative is led by the All Island Institute of Public Health (IPH) in partnership with the Bamford Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing at Ulster University and GBHI.

The project is co-funded by the Department of Finance in Northern Ireland and the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation in Ireland and supported by PEACEPLUS, a programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB).

The new PHKH will collect and collate data to support better policymaking and, in turn, better health outcomes in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

It will gather directly comparable public health data by developing a new all-island survey to capture and measure a range of public health indicators among the adult population in both jurisdictions. By combining this new all-island survey data with existing data, the initiative will strengthen the public health evidence base, inform long-term policies, and highlight potential opportunities for coordinated responses to shared public health challenges.

As part of the project, a new digital platform will be developed to host new and existing public health data, benefiting policymakers, public health professionals, researchers, community organisations, and the wider public.

Professor Iracema Leroi, Site Director of the Global Brain Health Institute and Professor in Geriatric Psychiatry at Trinity, said: “Data are among the most powerful tools we have to improve health, including brain health, which underpins how individuals and societies function and thrive. 

"By harmonising public health data across the island of Ireland, this project will help us see more clearly, act more effectively and learn together—because better health depends on looking beyond borders.”

PEACEPLUS is a cross-border funding Programme designed to support peace and prosperity across Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland. The total value of PEACEPLUS is €1.14 billion. PEACEPLUS is co-funded by the European Union, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Government of Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Executive.

The Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) is a North South Body with the statutory remit for managing EU funding programmes within Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland.

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