6.4 The Region’s Economic Engines and their Sectoral Opportunities

6.4 The Region’s Economic Engines and their Sectoral Opportunities

In alignment with the Growth Strategy for the Region in Chapter 3, and in conjunction with the Settlement Strategy expressed in Chapter 4, it is an aim of the RSES that there is a convergence between where people live and work and that settlements improve the quality of life of their people.

Dublin Metropolitan Area

As Ireland’s Capital with international visibility, Dublin plays a key role as a location of choice for mobile investment. Dublin competes with other cities based throughout Europe and internationally. It is a competitive, world class city of scale that provides access to a multilingual skills base, that facilitates mobility of people and international access.

For a country of Ireland’s scale, many sectoral strategies are developed at national level – such as Agri food, Marine/ Maritime, Bioeconomy - and regional actors play a key role in their effective implementation. Nevertheless, smart specialisation can only work if choices are based on real knowledge of local potential and if the right actors are involved, therefore a bottom-up approach is also necessary. For instance, when considering the development of sectoral opportunities, it is important to consider the past and current industrial composition in that particular location, as new sectors may require fundamentally different assets compared to those available in the location.

Dublin as national economic driver is the only city in Ireland with international scale. It hosts a variety of enterprises with large concentration of multi-nationals; a large number of universities, institutes and research centres with a young and well-educated population. All these features translates into:

• Dublin Metropolitan area with a strong capacity to attract FDI, and

• A large amount of new business formation - startups - and a high concentration of organisations dedicated to research and development, which suggests a critical mass of businesses in a healthy ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship.

Furthermore, there are place-specific needs from particular industries, such as proximity to high energy services infrastructure, water capacity, availability of a large pool of potential employees, proximity to public transport, access to international markets through airports and ports, and serviced lands. These issues should be considered by local authorities in their economic zoning objectives in development plans and objectives in LECPs to anticipate and respond to the needs of existing enterprise and realise sectoral opportunities, examples include retail, marine and energy production.

We can be, and should be, ambitious for our Capital City as we deliver on Project Ireland 2040. A coordinated and strategic approach to deliver on a truly smart city would not only elevate Ireland’s visibility internationally, but also provide a seed-bed for start-ups and a test bed for the deployment of disruptive technologies.

Sectoral Opportunities Dublin and Eastern SPAs

The pervasiveness of digitisation across all sectors compounds the complexity of sector development, and it provides for constant and rapid evolution of emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics and virtual reality.

Having regard to the strengths of its own enterprise base, Dublin should explore opportunities for further development on Fintech, CorpTech, personalised and regenerative medicine, internet of things, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, technology consulting, sharing economy, international education services, investment management and administration, and marine energy. The Dublin Regional Enterprise strategy (2017-2019) identifies key sectors and employment levels, together with the clustering of activity and supports across the Region, including: administration; professional services; tourism and leisure; education and training; manufacturing and industry; transport and logistics; construction; information and communication technology, and, retail and wholesale. Current REPs and LECPs identify manufacturing, distribution and logistics, technology, pharmaceutical, equine foods, and creative industries/film.

Based on information from REPs, LECPs, localised enterprise strategies and other stakeholders with regards to the presence of strong sectors in their localities and considering sectoral growth trends, a list of sectoral opportunities has been identified for Dublin, Dublin-Belfast Economic corridor, Regional Growth Centres, towns and villages. These sectoral opportunities should be considered by all enterprise development stakeholders, including REPs and local authorities, giving due regard to the sectoral strategies envisaged at national level. This list is not exhaustive and should not be viewed as a limitation.

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Economy & Employment

Dublin – Belfast Economic Corridor

Sectoral Opportunities Midlands (including Athlone)

The Dublin-Belfast Economic Corridor is a key element in the development of the RSES (see Chapter 3 Growth Strategy). The Corridor is underpinned by a strong presence of transport infrastructure that connects the two main cities of scale on the Island. Its area of influence hosts a combined population- between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland- of more than 3.3 million people of which Drogheda, Dundalk and Newry are part.

Advanced manufacturing, smart manufacturing, medical devices, implanted devices, pharma/bio, food and engineered products, advanced composite materials, applied nanotechnology, technology consulting, Food and Beverage Industry including sustainable foods, meat products, agri-biologicals, bio-refining, bioconversion, biotechnology, smart construction, Tourism including experiential tourism, precision farming, global engineering services outsourcing, drug delivery services, renewable energy, Big Data and Data Analytics.

The Corridor has the capacity to provide the only potential paired city growth pole of scale on the Island- reaching a European benchmark 5 million population target to compete with similar city regions in the EU. The imperative to counteract BREXIT with a proactive spatial economic policy adds to the international significance of the Corridor. It also provides opportunities to further Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), for example with the Louth Pharma hub at the centre of the Corridor, and the e-payments cluster. By increasing its critical mass, population and jobs growth will take place in a sustainable growth pattern focused on clusters and smart specialisation, in line with the Region’s Economic and Settlement Strategy. The Corridor also offers extended strategic connections throughout the Island through links with the TEN-T network and the Dublin- Rosslare route.

Key Towns, Self- Sustaining Growth Towns and Self- Sustaining Towns

The RSES Growth Strategy set out in Chapter 3 and settlement hierarchy in Chapter 4 identifies Key Towns, Self- Sustaining Growth Towns and Self- Sustaining Towns, the latter categories being defined at county development plan stage.

Key Towns, strong market/sub county towns are locations that have an economic function that provides employment for their surrounding areas and have a wide catchment. In many cases these areas have varying economies and sectors and the Strategy will support their sustainable growth.

Sectoral Opportunities Dublin-Belfast Economic Corridor (including Dundalk and Drogheda)

Rural Places: Towns, Villages and the Countryside

Advanced manufacturing, smart manufacturing, biopharma, bioprocessing, applied nanotechnology, alcoholic beverages, marine energy, energy storage, wind energy, advance manufacturing, experiential tourism, and Fintech.

The Action Plan for Rural Development set for 2020 aims to protect and promote the sense of place and culture and the quality, character and distinctiveness of the Irish rural landscape that make Ireland’s rural areas authentic and attractive as places to live, work and visit.

Regional Growth Centres: Athlone, Drogheda and Dundalk

The current Action Plan places a major focus on strengthening Ireland’s rural fabric and supporting the communities who live there; Planning for the future growth and development of rural areas, including addressing decline, with a special focus on activating the potential for the renewal and development of smaller towns and villages; Putting in place planning and investment policies to support job creation in the rural economy; addressing connectivity gaps; better co-ordination of existing investment programmes dealing with social inclusion, rural development and town and village renewal.

The role of these Regional Growth Centres within the RSES is to serve as a focal point to gain critical mass and to deliver positive impacts to their surrounding areas and enhance overall regional and national growth (see Chapter 4 People and Place). A coordinated approach to infrastructure investment will be taken for the development of all urban centres and inter-connections in order to build greater levels of critical mass and to facilitate effective movement of goods and people internationally and nationally.

Sectoral Opportunities Key Towns, Self- Sustaining Growth Towns, Self- Sustaining Towns and Rural Places

The presence of Third level institutes in Athlone and Dundalk can play an increasingly strong role as key drivers of economic growth. These Technology and Innovation Poles envisage building facilities, developing the expertise and supportive capabilities of the Institutes of Technologies (IoTs) working with Enterprise Ireland (EI) and IDA. The IoTs can play a key role as drivers of enterprise activity across the Regions through inter-institutional connections and impactful collaboration.

Precision farming, biotechnology, Tourism including experiential tourism, food and beverage products, functional food premium, renewable energy, solar energy microgeneration, wind energy, energy storage, and low carbon construction.

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Regional Spatial & Economic Strategy

The smaller towns and the rural economy are an important part of the social fabric in the Region. There is a need for promotion in rural places of new economic opportunities arising from digital connectivity and indigenous innovation and enterprise as well as more traditional natural and resource assets (e.g. food, energy, tourism), underpinned by the quality of life offering.

Local authorities may leverage the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) network, Chambers of Commerce and business networks to expand and diversify their rural enterprise base (see Figures 6.5 and 6.6 Enterprise Development and Innovation Assets maps for Dublin and the Region).

The Assembly, through its European functions, will assist in leveraging of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy to improve agricultural productivity, ensuring that farmers earn a reasonable living, help to address climate change, maintain rural areas and landscapes and keep the rural economy alive.

New business formation and innovation in rural areas depend on drivers such as the presence of human capital, proximity and access to higher education institutions, ICT infrastructure including broadband, transport infrastructure and the presence of a wide sectoral mix.

It is an ambition of the RSES to stimulate a greater number of start-ups, more export focussed companies, and to enhance the business survival rates overall in the Region. Many companies will continue to trade on the domestic market and they play an important role in Ireland’s economy across a broad range of sectors and activities. In terms of employment-intensive sectors such as retail, tourism, construction, education and health, while these may not be the focus of an export-led technology-focussed economic strategy they are core employers in the Region and will continue to do so. These sectors also have significant implications for the RSO of placemaking and creating attractive environments in which to live and work.

The Partnership Companies, Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs), Local Enterprise Centres and LECPs in rural areas should prioritise regeneration of town and village cores, promotion of local industry and enable the ambition of all places and enhance quality of life.

CASE STUDY:

Irish Rural Link Programme

Irish Rural Link (IRL), is a national network of organisations and individuals campaigning for sustainable rural development in Ireland and Europe. IRL, a non-profit organisation directly represents over 600 community groups and is a member of the Community and Voluntary Pillar of Social Partnership.

While the RSES seeks to anticipate and plan for jobs growth and economic development, new and unexpected opportunities for enterprise development are likely to arise for particular locational reasons, such as local resources, skills, assets, innovation or quality of life.

The network provides a structure through which rural groups and individuals, representing disadvantaged rural communities, can articulate their common needs and priorities, share their experiences and present their case to policy-makers at local, national and European Level. Projects include the Farm Safety Programme, National Rural Network and Local Public Banking and a number of EU funded projects.25

CASE STUDY:

Boyne Valley Food Hub

The Boyne Valley region has been synonymous with food production and trade as far back as 10,000 years ago. The Boyne Valley Food Hub is a flagship project of Boyne Valley Food Innovation District in partnership with local authorities and LEOs, Enterprise Ireland, Bord Bia, IDA, Teagasc and with leading universities and industry. The aim is to accelerate the growth of the agri-food sector through collaboration, innovation, and clustering to support scalable, sustainable and profitable food businesses in Meath, Louth, Kildare and Wicklow.

Local authorities should enable the identification of regeneration and rural development projects within existing towns and villages by identifying and quantifying available land (serviced or with potential to be serviced) and vacant buildings. Cross-boundary and inter-regional partnerships should be prioritised and nurtured. For instance, the Upper Shannon Erne Future Economy Project brings together the counties of Cavan, Leitrim, Roscommon and Longford to explore and develop opportunities in renewable energy, tourism, and digital strategies.

Boyne Valley Food Hub packages a number of industry deliverables including food units for startup and scaling food business, a community kitchen, a Food Innovation and Research Lab and onsite food technologist and business development manager, to support food innovation programmes.

25 www.irishrurallink.ie

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Economy & Employment

REGIONAL POLICY OBJECTIVES:

RPO 6.7: Support local authorities to develop sustainable and economically efficient rural economies through initiatives to enhance sectors such as agricultural and food, forestry, fishing and aquaculture, energy and extractive industries, the bioeconomy, tourism, and diversification into alternative on-farm and off-farm activities, while at the same time noting the importance of maintaining and protecting the natural landscape and built heritage.

Unexpected Opportunities for Enterprise Development

RPO 6.2: Support local authorities to ensure their LECPs and city and county development plans are sufficiently agile to account for unexpected opportunities, to accommodate valid propositions for enterprise development that may emerge and for which there are strong locational drivers that do not apply to the same extent elsewhere.

RPO 6.8: To support the sustainable development of tourism in the Region in line with the strategic objectives of both Ireland’s Ancient East and Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands experience brand propositions.

REGIONAL POLICY OBJECTIVE:

REGIONAL POLICY OBJECTIVES:

Dublin – Belfast Economic Corridor

Regional Enterprise Plans

RPO 6.3: Support the effective planning and development of large centres of population and employment along the main economic corridor, in particular Drogheda and Dundalk.

RPO 6.9: The Regional Assembly supports the Regional Enterprise Plans to focus on;

• Support a high level of economic success throughout the region by building on local strengths and regional innovation capacity. • Position and support the growth of the Midlands as an advanced manufacturing centre of excellence. • Leverage opportunities in big data and data analytics from iLOFAR. • Ensure that the Midlands is well positioned to address the challenges posed by the transition to a low carbon economy and renewable energy. • Increase enterprise engagement in innovation, research and development to ensure Dublin’s continued competitiveness and productivity. • Build a pipeline of sustainable and scalable startups in Dublin and provide quality support. • Develop the Mid-East as a hub for the Screen Content Creation Sector. • Build an ecosystem framework to support the financial services, payments and agrifood sectors throughout the Region. • Develop a network of innovative co-working spaces in the region to mitigate long commuting times, promote remote working opportunities and life-style benefits.

REGIONAL POLICY OBJECTIVES:

Rural Economy

RPO 6.4: Local authorities shall identify measures in LECPs for regeneration in small towns and villages cores.

RPO 6.5: Local authorities shall explore projects in LECPs for the enhancement of the competitiveness of their rural areas by supporting innovation in rural economic development and enterprise through the diversification of the rural economy into new sectors and services, including ICT-based industries and those addressing climate change and sustainability. Cross-boundary and inter-regional partnerships are encouraged and they will be supported.

RPO 6.6: Support local authorities to explore mechanisms for the emergence of a diversified sectoral mix in rural areas. This includes the identification of appropriate locations to drive regeneration of these rural towns and villages for example by the provision of serviced sites for housing and co-working/incubator space near Institutes of Technology to facilitate technological spillovers through greater connections and linkages.

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Regional Spatial & Economic Strategy