REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT A RECEPTION IN ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN FOR YOUNG CRAFTS PEOPLE
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT A RECEPTION IN ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN FOR YOUNG CRAFTS PEOPLE TUESDAY, 11TH APRIL, 2006
Is cúis mhór áthais dom fáilte a chur romhaibh go léir chuig Áras an Uachtaráin inniu.
Both Martin and myself are delighted to welcome you to Áras an Uachtaráin and we thank you for coming, especially those who have travelled long distances to be here.
Today through you we celebrate Ireland’s craftsmen and women. It is the work of your hands and your imaginations, it is your skills which are driving and underpinning one of the world’s most successful and dynamic economies. Whether your work is in cutting edge technology or traditional crafts, your commitment to Ireland and to excellence have allowed our country to step right to the forefront of the 21st century.
We have an amazingly diverse group of people here today - entrepreneurs, self-employed, employers, supervisors, members of the Defence Forces, College Lecturers, Instructors in FÁS, well known sports personalities, people who are involved in community and humanitarian projects, competitors in the National Skills Competitions and the World Skills Competitions. You have some big things in common: you have all served a formal apprenticeship, are qualified crafts people and have earned the National Craft Certificate, an internationally recognised qualification, by the Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) and each one of you is making a very positive contribution not only to the Irish economy but also to the communities in which you work and live.
Apprenticeship as a form of training pre-dates even Christianity and it has long been a cornerstone of the development of craft skills in Ireland. One of the strengths of the Standards-Based Apprenticeship system in Ireland is that it combines practical on-the-job training with formal education and training in FÁS training centres and the Institutes of Technology. That combination of both the practical and the academic gives our system and its graduates a strong competitive edge - well showcased by the phenomenal success of the Irish team in the World Skills Competition over the years, winning an impressive 26 medals and 50 Medallions of Excellence over the last six competitions.
The number of registered apprentices has grown from less than 12,000 ten years ago to over 28,000 today, clear evidence of the great growth in economic activity and the fresh opportunities it has created. Apprenticeship provides many avenues for career progression and the acquisition of additional skills and qualifications over a working life. The structure and content of the apprenticeship system is at its best when all the agencies which need to feed their wisdom into the discussion, cooperate in easy and fluent partnerships. Ireland is indebted to all those who create such an effective culture of co-operation - the employers, trade unions, FÁS, Institutes of Technology and the Department of Education & Science. Their combined distilled wisdom gives us an apprenticeship system that meets both the needs of industry as well as those of the apprentices themselves. The combined assistance of Ciaran Taaffe, Michael Murphy, Len O’Connor and Tony Power was very helpful in the organisation of this day and we thank them most sincerely.
Martin and I hope that your visit here today will be a memorable one. We hope that you will take this opportunity to share your experiences and to make new friends. Above all we hope that you will relax and enjoy yourselves.
I would like to thank the musicians from Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann for entertaining us so well this afternoon. I would also like to thank our friends from Civil Defence and the Áras team who have worked hard to make today enjoyable for everyone.
Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.