MORE than €18 million has been allocated to projects in Limerick, Clare and North Tipperary under the latest Mid-West Regional Enterprise Plan launched by Tánaiste Leo Varadkar last weekend.
The plan, which is designed to generate projects that create jobs and help companies to grow in the region, outlines a number of actions and strategic objectives for delivery between now and 2024.
Among the Limerick enterprises that will benefit from the funding are Innovate Limerick/Hospital Foods to develop a digital collaboration centre for applied disruptive technology and the BNest Social Initiative to develop the business capability of social entrepreneurs.
The plan has been developed by a Regional Steering Committee, chaired in the Mid-West by Professor Eamonn Murphy and including the Enterprise Agencies, Local Enterprise Offices, the Local Authorities, Regional Assembly, higher and further education bodies and local industry leaders among others.
Funding will come from the Regional Enterprise Development Fund (REDF) which will have up to €180million in funding nationally, to support innovative projects that can enable and sustain enterprise and employment growth in the regions.
The plan has been welcomed by Mayor Daniel Butler who said that it lays the foundations for the development of enterprise right across Limerick and the wider region.
” It will help us to capitalise on our strengths to provide a meaningful return on the investment, so that Limerick and the mid-west can continue to be seen as innovators and risk-takers,” he added.
Limerick City and County Council chief executive Pat Daly said the plan will ensure that the Mid West becomes a leading region for innovation and digital technology while becoming Ireland’s leading sustainable low carbon region.
” I particularly welcome the commitmentsin the plan to develop the social enterprise sector and specific job creation initiatives for areas with high unemployment’’.
Over the lifetime of the previous plan from 2017 to 2020, the Mid-West secured over €16 million in REDF funding across eight projects including the ENGINE Collaboration Centre in Limerick City; Future Mobility Campus in Shannon, National BioEconomy Campus in Tipperary and regionally based business clusters in the Aerospace and Social Enterprise sectors.
