The Irish government has increased its investment in the country’s national governing bodies of sport (NGB).

Channeled through the Irish Sports Council (ISC), a total of €19.6m (US$22.4m, £14.5m) will be made available to NGBs during 2015 – an increase of more than €1m (US$1.1m, £0.7m) on the funding levels of 2014.

The investment includes an allocation of €10.85m (US$12.4m, £8m) to 59 NGBs, while €8.2m (US$9.3m, £6.1m) will be invested in 22 Performance Plans, which will support Irish participation at the 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Minister of state for sport, Michael Ring, said: “Today's investment is a substantial commitment from the Irish Government to the National Governing Bodies of Sport in Ireland.

“The importance of sport cannot be understated. Sport has the unique ability to activate local communities through participation and volunteerism whilst uniting a nation

The funding also includes a €600,000 (US$684,276, £444,831) grant to support the Women in Sport programme – which has so far been adopted by 23 Irish NGBs.

This year (2015) marks the 10th anniversary of the Women in Sport programme, a scheme which aims to raise the overall physical activity levels among women.

It has been described as a key driver in closing the gender gap, as women's participation has grown from 39 per cent (2011) to 42.7 per cent (2013).