Enterprise Ireland investment mission to strengthen ties with global Irish businesses to explore opportunities for further investment in Ireland.
Enterprise Minister Peter Burke, TD, is spearheading a two-day Enterprise Ireland investment mission focused on strengthening relationships with Ireland’s largest homegrown multinational companies
The mission, which began today (10 July) will see Minister Burke visiting major Irish-owned global businesses at their headquarters in Ireland, including Ryanair, Kingspan, ICON PLC, Uniphar and Smurfit Westrock.
“Engaging and meeting directly with entrepreneurs and leaders is hugely important in terms of understanding challenges facing the Irish enterprise base”
This inaugural investment mission is led by Enterprise Ireland’s new Global Irish Business Unit, established last year to stimulate investment and deepen relations with global Irish businesses contributing significantly to the Irish economy.
Keeping the home fires burning
“Nurturing the development of homegrown Irish success stories is of huge importance to this government, and this investment mission provides a unique opportunity to engage directly with some of Ireland’s top business leaders, to identify new opportunities for growth, and to understand more about challenges they are facing,” said Minister Burke.
“Engaging and meeting directly with entrepreneurs and leaders is hugely important in terms of understanding challenges facing the Irish enterprise base, and I am delighted to lead this important investment mission.”
The mission aims to explore new opportunities for further investment in Ireland, address global opportunities and potential areas for collaboration with Ireland’s entrepreneurial and research ecosystems. Discussions will focus on encouraging more value-added activity by these global leaders in Ireland and connecting them with various aspects of the Irish business and research communities.
The strategic initiative comes as Enterprise Ireland reported record-breaking results last week, with exports from Irish-owned companies reaching €36.75bn in 2024, representing a 7% increase from the previous year. Employment at Enterprise Ireland-supported companies also reached record levels, with 234,454 people employed across the country.
“Working with Irish companies at all stages of their growth journey is at the centre of everything we do in Enterprise Ireland,” said Jenny Melia, CEO Designate of Enterprise Ireland. “Scaling companies is a key priority for Enterprise Ireland, and it is our long-term ambition that exporting Irish companies become the primary driver of the Irish economy.”
“A number of important factors are required to foster a company’s scaling ambition, including funding, skills and talent, and support in global markets. And Enterprise Ireland stands ready to support companies across all of these pillars. These established multinationals we are meeting with through this investment mission all make a significant contribution to our economy, and we look forward to hearing from them and learning more about new potential areas of collaboration,” Melia added.
The mission also provides a platform to highlight Ireland as an ideal location for new centres of excellence in digitalisation, research and development, HR, finance, and sustainability.
Alan Hobbs, Head of the Global Irish Business Unit at Enterprise Ireland, emphasised the importance of supporting scaling businesses.
“Agile and innovative Irish businesses continue to be successful in overseas markets, demonstrating their ability to compete and win internationally, and over the next five years, Enterprise Ireland will bring a renewed focus to ensuring that we enable more Irish businesses to scale, and to do so at a faster rate.
“Irish-owned multinationals with a significant presence in Ireland are at the forefront of innovation and are global leaders in their fields. And Enterprise Ireland will continue to collaborate with these businesses to deliver further job creation across the country as they continue to scale.”
Under Enterprise Ireland’s new five-year strategy, ‘Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally (2025-2029)’, the agency has set ambitious targets including 275,000 people employed in Enterprise Ireland-supported companies by 2029, €50bn in export sales, and 150 large Irish exporting companies with more than 250 employees.
The two-day programme will also provide opportunities for engagement on the global trading environment and geopolitical developments affecting Irish businesses operating internationally.
Image at top: Jenny Melia, CEO Designate, Enterprise Ireland; Peter Burke, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment; and Alan Hobbs, Head of the Global Irish Business Unit at Enterprise Ireland
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