Ireland has the potential to deliver export-led economic growth and jobs, a new report from Forfás, the policy advisory board for enterprise and science, suggests.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Batt O’Keeffe TD, said the research sets out a strategic approach to contributing to targets of 2 million people in work and annual economic growth of 4.6pc by 2015.
The report – Making It Happen: Growing Enterprise for Ireland – focuses on Ireland’s proven track record in a number of markets and sectors for exports and foreign direct investment, which it says can be expanded upon to exploit emerging opportunities.
Martin Shanahan, chief executive of Forfás, emphasised the importance of exports and what he terms a “whole of enterprise approach”, which he feels will offer more job opportunities and optimise growth of the economy.
Growth
“A return to export-led growth is the best route to deliver sustainable economic growth and job creation. Exports have a greater potential to grow and to fuel the domestic economy and deliver more job opportunities,” he added.
“A return to export-led growth does not require a change of focus for enterprise policy; what is really needed now is action.”
The recommendations in the report cover a wide range of categories, including: productivity, innovation, cost-competitiveness, enterprise mix, and short-term measures.
“The four success factors set out by Forfás – innovation, productivity, cost competitiveness and a strong enterprise mix – are key to our recovery, growth and employment creation targets,” O’Keeffe said.
The full report is available to download online.
