REMARKS BY PRESIDENT OF IRELAND, MS. MARY MCALEESE AT THE HOUSTON INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL KEYNOTE
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT OF IRELAND, MS. MARY MCALEESE AT THE HOUSTON INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL KEYNOTE LUNCHEON
Mayor Brown, Mr Ferguson, Mr Kohler
I am delighted to be here this afternoon and to have this opportunity to address this distinguished gathering.
It is always easier to be a messenger, when the tidings you bring are positive. And I am especially fortunate that the news I bring of Ireland today, is of a thriving nation with one of the most vibrant and dynamic economies in the world, and an economic performance unmatched among industrialised countries. To many observers, our economy is a prime example of what a relatively small European country can achieve in today’s highly competitive international trading environment. And as the largest market for Irish goods and services, the United States continues to play a key role in our success story.
Even to those familiar with Ireland’s economic miracle, the extent of that transformation remains breathtaking. Between 1994 and 2000, our growth rate averaged 8%, putting us way ahead of our partners in both the European Union and the OECD. Direct inward investment, especially by U.S. corporations, of which 500 have located in Ireland over the past two decades, has been an important driver of that growth. These companies, including such Texas-based firms as Dell, Compaq and American Airlines, account for approximately 30% of total manufacturing employment. But crucially, they have also helped to create opportunities for our own entrepreneurs and indigenous small and medium sized enterprises, which are now the fastest growing contributors to Irish trade. The result of this success is that unemployment rates have dropped to below 4% and the involuntary emigration of the past has been replaced by net immigration.
The economic dimension of our transformation is the most easily measured and therefore often the one that attracts the most attention. But it does not paint the entire picture of an Ireland that has changed so radically within the space of a generation. In Ireland today, there is a palpable sense of excitement as business people, students, artists, people from all walks of Irish life, feel a new confidence and continue to seek out, and find, a myriad of new opportunities not just at home in Ireland, but across the world. This confidence and optimism pervades so many aspects of Irish social and cultural life. We are proud that after so many years of struggle, we finally have a chance to show the world, indeed to show ourselves, the full extent of what we are capable of achieving.
There have always been strong bonds of culture, history and friendship between our two countries. Today, these traditional bonds are matched by an equally dynamic economic relationship with real benefits and opportunities for both sides. We hope that you will come to Ireland and see this for yourselves, as indeed many of your business colleagues here in the United States and from many countries around the world already have.
In the early middle-ages, Ireland was known as a centre of learning, the “Island of Saints and Scholars”. Today, Ireland has once again established its place in the forefront of learning and development, this time, in the new knowledge-based industries and the growth of the Information Society. Ireland is now the largest exporter of software in the world and the software sector, together with IT and Telecommunications, now account for a significant proportion of trade between our two countries. Irish high-tech companies are spearheading a new wave of investment overseas and by 2003 software-related companies are expected to account for 80% of Irish companies with a presence here in the United States.
At one level, the key drivers of Ireland’s economic transformation have been a combination of greater competitiveness, a flair for innovation and a positive disposition to embrace change. We are deeply conscious that in today’s global economy, a well educated workforce is a key resource, and the single most important factor in enabling entrepreneurs alike to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the new economy. Successive Governments have, for many years, invested heavily in education and this far-sighted investment is now paying huge dividends. Over 60% of school-leavers now proceed to third-level education and our well educated youth will continue to be a beacon attracting foreign investment to Ireland, as well as providing a well-spring of native ideas and innovation.
Another factor underpinning Ireland’s sustained economic growth has been our partnership approach to managing the economy. This has brought together Government, industry, employers, trade unions and the voluntary sector to agree economic goals, and the means of achieving them. It has also sought to ensure that everybody in Ireland benefits from the improvements in living standards, not just in terms of income, but also by recognising the importance of addressing issues which affect the quality of people’s lives. Since 1987, social partnership agreements have provided a stable environment for encouraging investment and development, and produced a tax system which rewards enterprise and employment.
No assessment of Ireland’s economic growth would be either accurate or complete without a clear acknowledgement of the benefits which membership of the European Union have brought to Ireland and the Irish people. The economic and social benefits of EU membership, both direct and indirect, have been enormous and have impacted upon the entire population, in all aspects of our lives. The people of Ireland who, for many years, saw Europe as somewhere separate, a place apart, now see themselves at the very heart of Europe and the European project. In addition to economic benefits, our membership of the Union, with its exposure to the many cultures and faces of Europe, has made us ever more aware, and proud, of our own unique identity.
So much new investment - foreign and domestic - would not have taken place, so many new jobs would not have been generated, without our participation in the Single Market of the European Union. Our membership has enhanced Ireland’s attractiveness as a destination for investment; it has assisted our indigenous companies to develop, not only by access to the single market, but also by giving them opportunities for co-operation with companies in a variety of economic sectors throughout Europe.
The European Union is now set to undergo enormous changes through enlargement. We in Ireland have watched with admiration the efforts of the candidate countries to prepare for membership and appreciate, perhaps more than most, the challenges they face in bringing about a transformation of this order. With our own experience in mind, we can do no less than offer every encouragement to persevere. We in Ireland are, of course, well placed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by an enlarged Union and alongside the economic benefits, we look forward to playing our part in a more culturally diverse European mainstream.
The launch next January of the European single currency, the euro, will further bolster the advantages already created by the single market. The removal of the last barriers to trade and to commercial partnerships, and the improvements in market transparency which the euro will entail, present us with new opportunities, and further enhance our attractiveness as a location for investment. We will also of course be the only English speaking country inside the euro!
In some ways we have been victims of our own success and the economy has now outgrown the country’s infrastructure. To remedy this, Government has embarked on an unprecedented level of investment in infrastructure, over the next seven years, through the National Development Programme. This is a carefully targeted programme of investment to protect and enhance Ireland’s competitiveness and total investment in the programme will be over £40 billion.
Ireland’s success today was by no means a foregone conclusion. It is the result of the dedication, commitment and the sheer hard work of the people of Ireland. In this, we have, of course, benefited from the outstanding co-operation which Ireland has received from its many friends across the world, not least here in the United States. At the start of the 21st Century we are privileged to find ourselves the last European parish before Texas, very comfortable with our American neighbours to the West and very comfortable with our European neighbours to the East, including I am happy to say, the United Kingdom with whom after many centuries of unhappy relationships, we now enjoy a maturing, respectful partnership. These are new times for Ireland. A new language of possibilities has emerged this past decade and we have much to look forward to, much we hope to be able to share with our friends here in Houston.
Thank you.