The Special Rapporteur on Racial Equality and Racism has said all schools should teach anti-racism as a compulsory element of the curriculum.
Dr Ebun Joseph also recommended mandatory anti-racism training across the civil and public service in her first annual report.
Dr Joseph was appointed Ireland's first Special Rapporteur in 2024 to give an independent evaluation of the Government’s National Action Plan Against Racism.
The report says Ireland has established an important framework to address racism but the "implementation remains procedural rather than transformative".
It says Ireland’s anti-racism framework is "robust on paper but uneven in execution" saying "Incomplete departmental engagement undermines the whole-of-government mandate".
Dr Jacob said hate speech legislation must be urgently updated and data collection on racism and ethnicity remains insufficient.
One of the other key findings is that "rising anti-migrant sentiment and far-right activity pose increasing risks to social cohesion".
The report said there are challenges with "growing far-right presence and rhetoric, both online and in public spaces, including protests and targeted attacks" and short-term, fragmented funding for anti-racism initiatives.
"Diversity remains limited across departmental staffing, political offices, and senior management, with many departments viewing this as outside their remit", according to the report.
