Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2023
273. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the breakdown of the number of site visits hosted by the IDA in counties Galway, Clare and Limerick during the first six months of 2023, by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32700/23]
View answerRegional development remains a key priority for Enterprise Policy for my Department and for IDA Ireland and the other Enterprise Development Agencies. In that regard, the IDA is committed to the pursuit of balanced, compact regional development and is targeting at least half of all investments - that is 400 of 800 - from 2021 to 2024 to regional locations. Of the 242 investments won in 2022, more than half went to regional locations, and for 2021, of the 249 investments secured by the IDA, 133 - again more than 50% - went to locations outside Dublin.
IDA Ireland results for 2022 showed the highest increase in FDI employment on record. Total employment in IDA client companies in Ireland now stands at 301,475, the highest employment level ever and a 9% increase on 2021. Employment growth was recorded in every region of the country for the second consecutive year.
The West and Mid-West has a significant ecosystem of well-established companies across Technology, Life Sciences, International Financial Services and Engineering & Industrial Technologies. It has also won significant investment across all of these sectors over a sustained period which has contributed significantly to employment growth and positive economic impacts on other sectors of the economy.
There are currently 70 IDA client companies employing 6,643 people located in Clare, 69 IDA client companies employing 14,793 people located in Limerick and 99 IDA client companies employing 24,400 people located in Galway.
IDA Ireland continues to engage with new and existing companies on promoting Ireland as a location for their business and the Agency will continue to position Clare, Limerick and Galway for virtual and in-person site visits to prospective companies throughout 2023 and beyond. To the end of Q1 2023 there were 8 site visits to Clare, 7 site visits to Galway, all in-person, and 11 site visits to Limerick, 10 in-person & 1 virtual. Site visit data is verified at the end of the quarter and submitted to my Department in the month after. In this regard, I expect Q2 data next month.
