Gaeltacht body’s €1.5m grants

OVER €1.5 million in grants was approved in 2003 by Údarás na Gaeltachta to companies and entities associated with members of the board of the gaeltacht jobs creation agency.

The 2003 annual report of Údarás na Gaeltachta was published yesterday and it shows that €1,586,603 in respect of undertakings, which members of an Údarás were connected to and which were disclosed by the members at board meetings.

Údarás na Gaeltachta had an annual income of €46.8m in 2003 and paid out €17.81m in grants with total expenditure coming to €50.4m resulting in a deficit of €3.5m, down considerably from the €24.8m deficit in 2002.

There were 7,346 people employed in Údarás na Gaeltachta supported businesses at the end of 2003, compared with 7,531 at the end of 2002, a loss of 185 full time jobs

A total of 1,052 new jobs were created in Údarás supported enterprises in 2003, up 13% on 2002 but 1,277 full time jobs were lost in the same period.

Údarás na Gaeltachta chairman Liam Ó Cuinneagáin said job losses could be further contained in 2004.

“The gaeltacht needs about 1,000 new jobs per annum to meet the needs of new entrants to the jobs market and to offset the natural turnover of jobs that is a feature of our open economy.

“This must be achieved against a background of ongoing infrastructural deficiencies coupled with the continuing shift in manufacturing investment towards lower cost countries and the tendency for serviced-based employment to locate in urban areas,” he said in the report.

Mr Ó Cuinneagáin also disclosed that considerable progress had been made in discussions with telecom providers with regard to the provision of broadband infrastructure that will enable the Gaeltacht to compete with other locations for modern service investment.

The chairman said it was heartening to the food and modern services sector as the main engines of growth in gaeltachta areas.

“However, new types of business will take time to develop and - as is evident from our experience with the special employment drive in Donegal - attracting foreign direct investment and thereby modern jobs to the gaeltacht is facing stiff competition from urban locations in Ireland and abroad,” he noted.