A delegation of top-tier civil servants and IDA Ireland representatives will meet policymakers, regulators and bluechip US technology companies in a private US/Ireland e-commerce forum in Washington next week.
The brainstorming forum, organised by the new Irish e-commerce envoy in Washington, Ms Deirdre Fannin, is believed to be the first formal contact between the new Bush administration and a foreign delegation.
The forum developed out of contacts last autumn between Government representatives and US figures known to be likely Bush appointees in key technology policy areas.
According to a mission statement for the forum, the two-day meeting aims to help the Republic "develop policies and evolve strategies to maintain Ireland's position as the preferred location for US high-tech investment in Europe".
In particular, the forum will focus on the legislative and regulatory environments in the Republic. The State is anxious to maintain an open regulatory environment to promote e-commerce and technology company investment, especially in encryption and data privacy areas.
While the State has in place ecommerce regulation offering strong support for encryption and data privacy, the Department of Justice is in the process of producing a Criminal Justice Bill that must also deal with these areas.
The delegation is also known to be interested in the American approach to telecommunications regulation and infrastructure development. It is also interested in creating incentives here to build a broadband infrastructure.
