The National University of Ireland, Galway will unveil its new JE Cairnes Graduate School of Business & Public Policy today. The €16 million Graduate School, which will be officially launched by the Chairman of Reuters, Niall FitzGerald KBE, is the first of its type in Ireland focussing on the linkages between public policy, innovation and business success - both nationally and in the BMW region.

In all, the Cairnes Graduate School will house four centres of research excellence: Ireland's first Finance Centre, following a new senior appointment from the US Federal Reserve Board, will specialise in international financial economics. The centre will focus on developing new financial instruments and techniques for the development of the global financial services industry and will also produce information on exchange rates and house prices in industrial markets. A new €3.5 million centre for Social Gerontology, which will examine economics of an aging population, will also be housed at the school. €1.5 million for this initiative has been committed by Atlantic Philanthropies.

The Centre for Innovation & Structural Change (CISC), which examines the science, technology and innovation processes central to the development of the knowledge-based economy, has attracted over €4 million in competitive funding. One of its tasks is to establish a National Innovation Index, which will measure Ireland's progress in the development of a knowledge based economy on a quarterly basis. Finally, the Centre for Development of Rural Economic Space (CEDRES) has been established with European Union funding of €2 million and conducts internationally recognised research on rural and regional development.

In welcoming the new School, Dr Iognáid Ó Muircheartaigh, President of NUI Galway said, "The JE Cairnes Graduate School of Business & Public Policy underpins the University's position as a research centre of excellence - amongst the best in Europe. In addition to greatly enhancing our expanding and changing campus, we look forward to the positive impact the Cairnes Graduate School will bring to our business graduates of the future, and to creating Ireland's next wave of entrepreneurs and business leaders.

Our vision for this School is to drive change and innovation in Ireland's knowledge-based economy, particularly within the BMW region, with its highly skilled and creative young people, and globally competitive technology clusters."

Mr Niall FitzGerald KBE added, "I am a very strong believer in the role business education must play in bringing Ireland to the next phase of its economic development. It is increasingly understood that Ireland's future success will depend to a great degree on the calibre of its managers and leaders. The Cairnes Graduate School will build on a very fine tradition at NUI Galway of high quality teaching and research, now going further to link the roles of public policy, business innovation and the development of management capabilities. I look forward to witnessing the positive impact that this School will have, not just on the region but also on the entire country's future development."

The JE Cairnes Graduate School of Business & Public Policy is named after John Elliot Cairnes (1823-1875), the most distinguished economist Ireland has produced. During the 1860s, Cairnes was Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Economy at NUI Galway (then Queen's College Galway).

The 4,500 square metre facility was designed by leading Irish architects RKD. Funding has been secured from a combination of public and private sources, including substantial contributions from Atlantic Philanthropies and Galway based entrepreneur Joe Higgins.