Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 18 February 2015
69. Deputy Gabrielle McFadden asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation when the Enterprise Ireland €100 million funding programme, as part for Action Plan for Jobs regional, will be open for applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7382/15]
View answerThe Action Plan for Jobs – Regional - is based on the principle that the best way to support job-creation in towns and villages across the country is to support agencies and organisations within 8 regions, to build on the particular strengths and assets of their area and drive new job-creation strategies and projects.
This five year strategy will be based on the successful Action Plan for Jobs model of setting out lists of actions with timelines and responsibility allocated, and then monitoring implementation. As Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, I will lead the initiative.
Each of the 8 regions will develop its own Action Plan. It is my intention that all regional plans will be published or in development by July 2015.
Under the strategy, Enterprise Ireland will launch a series of new competitive funding initiatives in the areas of entrepreneurship, innovation, enterprise infrastructure and job creation. The objective is to bring forward fresh collaborative initiatives to boost enterprise and job creation in the region. An initial fund of €50 million is to be made available for three competitive calls.
The first of these competitive calls, with a budget of €5 million, will focus on community-driven enterprise initiatives and how all the local players, public and private, can work together to maximise job creation.
The Community Enterprise Initiatives Fund call will be open to existing Community Enterprise Centres (CECs) and also to any other organisation or groups of organisations with innovative ideas to create jobs, promote entrepreneurship, boost innovation or enhance exports. It should be open to any credible and novel approach rather than simply replicating what has been done before.
Criteria in any such competition will be announced by Enterprise Ireland, but the typical criteria will include:
- Promoting a culture of entrepreneurship locally and regionally;
- Developing capacity to start up and scale companies; filling gaps in enterprise facilities;
- Building on existing strengths or opportunities, e.g. developing a sectoral opportunity where there is a competitive advantage
- Devising a credible plan to deliver added value in jobs and start-ups and increased level of exporting/potential exporters
- Commitment of matching finance
- Bringing originality in approach, objectives, leverage of other stakeholders
- Leveraging off other enterprise support (Mentoring, funding, networks)
- Promoting public and private partnership, e.g. alignment/collaboration with others players (e.g. LEO, ETB, HEIs, Chambers etc.)
A second call, also with a budget of €5 million will focus on Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) and how innovative new ideas or plans to support job creation in the region can receive additional funding. A third, broader, competitive regional call of up to €40 million will support significant projects or initiatives to improve or leverage identified enterprise capability in the region.
The first two calls will be made at the end of March 2015.
