October 2013 NUI Galway Hosts Regional Roundtable of Global Irish Economic Forum

Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore TD says that the Forum will support growth and job creation

The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr Eamon Gilmore, T.D., today announced the Galway element of the Global Irish Economic Forum. NUI Galway will host a Regional Roundtable, including a public forum, on October 3 ahead of the Dublin Castle events on October 4 and 5.

An Tánaiste, a graduate of NUI Galway said “The forum will focus on opportunities in technology, education, industrial development and the SME sector. We will also examine high potential sectors including financial services, smart ageing technologies, food and agri-tech, social innovation and the digitisation of the global economy.”

The Global Irish Economic Forum is organised by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The programme includes the regional event to be held in Galway, in partnership with Enterprise Ireland and NUI Galway which will bring together members of the Global Irish Network, SMEs in the West region, and the academic community.

NUI Galway President, Dr Jim Browne, said “We are delighted to host this new element of the Global Irish Economic Forum at NUI Galway.  The Forum is an important national initiative and ensures that Ireland can benefit from the advice and engagement of many global Irish leaders, which will ultimately help this country’s economic, social and cultural development.  I am also very pleased to welcome a number of distinguished alumni back to campus as part of the Regional Roundtable event.  I look forward to hearing their perspectives on Ireland’s future.”

Members of the Network who will participate in the public forum, moderated by NUI Galway graduate Dr Gavin Jennings of RTÉ,  include  fellow graduates Irial Finan, Executive Vice President of Coca-Cola and Aedhmar Hynes CEO of Text100 along with Gerald Lawless, President of Jumeirah Group and Martin McCourt, Executive Vice-President, of Gemalto.

Places are limited and those wishing to attend the public forum are required to register in advance at www.conference.ie The forum will be in the Aula Maxima (Lower), Quadrangle Building, NUI Galway. The event begins at 1pm.  The event will be streamed live online at www.nuigalway.ie

This is the third Global Irish Economic Forum. The 2009 and 2011 Fora transformed the way in which the Government does business with leading international figures that are connected to Ireland. For example, the earlier fora lead to the launch of The Gathering, the largest ever tourism initiative organised by the State and the Global Irish Contacts Programme, which directly links the leading business figures abroad with Irish companies seeking to break into new markets and increase their exports.

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