REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT IRISH PROFESSIONALS NETWORK RECEPTION, MICROSOFT CONVENTION CENTRE
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT IRISH PROFESSIONALS NETWORK RECEPTION, MICROSOFT CONVENTION CENTRE, BELLEVUE, SEATTLE
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I travel all the way across the world, make my first visit to Seattle and find myself at home among Ireland’s extended global family. It is a matter of great pride to me that the people gathered here are talented and successful Irish educated professionals, whose gifts are bringing great success to your adopted American homeland. I am very grateful to each of you for being here and to Microsoft for their very warm welcome and for hosting this event.
Those of us who enjoy the benefits of Ireland’s phenomenal success are a privileged generation. It is a story which fascinates many people around the world, this story of rags to riches, of “ceann faoi” to “can do” from beaten docket to the Celtic Tiger. Microsoft has played a significant role in the changes wrought in Ireland for it first established an operation there twenty years ago. It has been a major contributor to Ireland's economic development, directly and indirectly, through its support of the Irish-owned software industry.
I know that at the time many of you left Ireland, the prospects for our economy were not good and the old culture of emigration was still the option of choice even for the best educated. Happily, times have changed. The tide of emigration has been reversed for the first time in a century and a half and the Irish economy continues to be one of the fastest growing in the world, driven by strong export growth. We are a trading nation and we rely on trade to maintain growth, create wealth, improve living standards and provide employment. The most recent Globalisation Index Study, compiled by international consultants A.T. Kearney, found Ireland to be the most globalised country in the world for the second year running.
The standard economic statistics are also very impressive. Ireland has become, proportionately, one of the world's most successful trading nations. Exports, as a percentage of Ireland's GDP, are among the highest in the world. Since 1994, Ireland's average annual rates of export growth have been the highest among OECD countries. Our overseas sales trebled in the 1980s, have doubled in the 1990s and are continuing to grow rapidly. Over the past five years, Irish export growth has been twice that of the European Union and three times the growth of total world trade. More than 80% of all manufacturing output in Ireland is sold in international markets.
Many factors have contributed to this success but there is no doubt that Ireland's business relationship with the United States has been a vital contributor. Over 600 U.S. companies are now operating in Ireland with an investment of over $55 billion dollars. That is a remarkable statistic but there is another probably even more remarkable one. Ireland today is investing in America. In fact we are the ninth most important source of foreign investment here. A new generation of Irish entrepreneurs has emerged; Irish companies have invested more than $25 billion in America, and employ over 65,000 people. There are now over 200 Irish companies operating throughout the US, many here in the Western US states.
I know that many of you here this evening will be aware that foreign direct investment in the Irish economy has been influential in stimulating Irish-owned technology firms. It is a remarkable fact that more than half of Ireland's new entrepreneurs, at some time in their careers, worked for a multinational software company, either in Ireland or abroad.
When I look at the great natural beauty of this part of the Pacific Northwest I can see why many of our high-tech graduates moved here. Many of you came here when you finished your University education in Ireland and you have made successful lives for yourselves and your families. You have done Ireland proud in the success you have achieved working with some of the key United States companies in this region. Our Ambassador to the United States, Noel Fahey will forgive me if I say that by the manner of your success, you are modern Ireland’s unpaid ambassadors in this part of the United States. Your presence here this evening is evidence of your continued interest in Ireland’s future success.
On my visit to this beautiful and dynamic part of the United States, I am pleased to have 29 of Ireland’s brightest companies travelling with my delegation. Our State Agency, Enterprise Ireland, is committed to supporting and developing further our competitiveness and helping our companies compete in an increasingly globalised world market.
Irish owned companies are now recognised market leaders in compliance, medical devices, aerospace tech solutions, wireless, corporate governance, biotech and eLearning to name just a few industries. They are building strong international businesses and the US market is central to their plans for expansion.
Our business delegation have come here to Seattle to reach out, to network and to learn what they can. I hope that perhaps this evening, amidst talk of home, of friends and family, some of you will have the opportunity to share your collective experiences and insights and perhaps give a further boost to an Ireland which has been transformed in the last 20 years. Human contacts still matter. They are our strength and you are the men and women whose lived lives speak of Ireland, its values and its character. We are very grateful to have such powerful advocates and showcases of the very best of things Irish.
Thank you for making me feel so welcome here.
Go raibh maith agaibh.