Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton is today leading a five-day mission to the US to attract firms to invest and create jobs in Ireland.
Mr Bruton will target 20 world-leading and start-up companies in technology life-sciences and financial services along the west coast.
The IDA mission to Seattle, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles and San Diego will focus particularly on the technology sector.
Mr Bruton said several multi nationals have performed well in Ireland in the last 18 months, with 12,000 jobs added.
“We must work hard to build on this performance, to attract more investments, to target more fast-growing emerging companies as well as global leaders, and to ensure that when these companies come to Ireland they provide even greater benefit to Ireland through supply chains and involvement in the local economy,” he added.
“I look forward to the intensive programme of meetings this week, to discussing these companies’ future plans and where Ireland can fit into them, and I hope that this can lead to investments and jobs for Ireland in the near future.”
Speaking on RTÉ radio, Mr Bruton said the key was in negotiating with companies who were either at an early stage of considering Ireland as a location, or with those who were already here and who might expand.
“It’s not just offering the tax regime or support with individual projects, it’s the whole business environment that we’ve created.”
The minister, along with IDA Ireland chief Barry O’Leary and other officials, will meet 15 technology companies and two health/life-sciences firms and businesses in the financial services, green technology and consumer products sectors.
They have a combined annual revenues of over 290 billion euro and employ more than 600,000 people worldwide.
Mr O’Leary said the foreign direct investment mission will involve meetings with some of the biggest companies in the world.
“We will be meeting with senior management to detail the unique advantages there are to running part of their businesses from Ireland,” he added, “Many of the companies we will meet have existing operations in Ireland — we will be discussing expansion opportunities with these clients.
“Our US-based IDA executives have also secured meetings with several high-growth companies.
“The high-growth sector is a key target for the IDA - we will be explaining the benefits that Ireland can offer them as a location from which to grow their business rapidly.”
The ICT sector currently employs approximately 100,000 people in Ireland.
PA