Waterford proposed as new economic hub

A Government-commissioned report has recommended that Waterford be developed as a major economic zone with the potential to compete with Dublin.

The report which is entitled

Vision 2011 - Linking Waterford and its Partners

was carried out by the Task Force into the area's economic problems set up by Tánaiste Ms Mary Harney last year.

It recommends establishing conditions where 18,000 new jobs can be created in the areas of technology, the public sector, health and education, retail, tourism and e-business.

It also proposes creating an independent University of the South East based on the Waterford Institute of Technology with campuses in Kilkenny and Wexford.

It envisages the provision of essential infrastructure such as the motorway to Dublin and dual-carriageway links within the economic zone is also envisaged.

The report recommends the creation of a Waterford economic zone with a population of 300,000 in a decade, with Clonmel, Dungarvan, Kilkenny and Wexford developing as ‘hubs’.

The strategy would also benefit smaller towns in the zone such as Carrick-on-Suir, New Ross, Thomastown and Tramore.

Ms Harney congratulated the Group on their hard work and commitment.

She said: "They have produced a strategy that can benefit not just Waterford but the entire South East region and at the same time make a positive contribution towards balanced national development."

"The report rightly acknowledges the fact that effective development requires a strong local commitment combined with positive cooperation on the part of regional and national authorities."

The report was commissioned in the context of the relatively poor performance of Waterford’s economy compared to other centres.