Vol. 482 No. 5
50 Mr. Belton asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her views on whether the western region lags behind the rest of the country in economic and social development; and if her attention has been drawn to recent research by Forfás which indicates that Ireland could position itself to gain 40,000 jobs in telecommunications based services before the year 2010. [18274/97]
The economic and social development of the western region is clearly an issue that extends well beyond the specific remit of my Department. I am fully committed to a policy of balanced regional industrial development throughout Ireland, including the west. All the industrial development agencies under the remit of my Department are working towards this goal.
The estimate of potential for 40,000 jobs was made by the consultants, Analysys Ltd. for Forfás, on the basis of Ireland gaining an increase in global market share in a range of related sectors such as financial services, software services, distance learning and teleservices generally. Making this estimate a reality will require the growth and expansion of both indigenous firms and the overseas owned sector. It will also require sustained investment in both the telecoms infrastructure and in human resources, with particular emphasis on language and software skills. Putting in place these elements will determine how well we do in developing the sector in the west as well as elsewhere in the State.
A number of initiatives and bodies have already been established to ensure these issues are addressed including the Information Society Commission, the Skills Identification Group and the National Competitiveness Council.
