Report: Republic shows more entrepreneurship than North

A new report examining entrepreneurship on the island of Ireland has revealed that entrepreneurial activity is greater in the Republic of Ireland with 80% of the Island's 250,000 entrepreneurs based south of the border.

The report also highlights areas of common concern in the Republic and Northern Ireland, which limit the full development of a dynamic entrepreneurial environment throughout the island.

These include the finding that the number of women active as entrepreneurs is relatively low (3.7% in Republic and 3.5% in Northern Ireland) and the number of informal investors among the adult population is also very low (2.6% in Republic and 0.9% in Northern Ireland).

Also a relatively high fear of failure, sufficient to deter a person from becoming an entrepreneur, prevails throughout the island (41% in Republic and 40% in Northern Ireland.)

The details were revealed in 'Entrepreneurship on the Island of Ireland' which was published today by InterTradeIreland in conjunction with Invest NI and Enterprise Ireland.

In an international context, the report found that entrepreneurial activity on the island was 30% less than in the USA.

On a more positive note, the island was found to be one of the most entrepreneurial in Europe - outranking economies such as France, Germany, Italy and Holland.

Commenting on the Report, Tánaiste Mary Harney said: "Entrepreneurship on the Island of Ireland adds valuable information to our knowledge of the dynamics which promote and inhibit entrepreneurial activity on the island of Ireland.

"We can now say with some certainty on the basis of this research, not only how many people are active as entrepreneurs on the island of Ireland, but who these entrepreneurs are, what types of new businesses they are starting, and what features in the environment support and constrain their activity."

"The challenge of fostering a fully dynamic entrepreneurial environment will require us to build on our own success, to focus on those areas in which we must improve, to learn from each other's experience and from the success of initiatives which have been proven elsewhere.

"I believe that this report, and the sharing of information and knowledge on which it is based, provides a very pragmatic example of a way that we, on the island of Ireland, can learn from each other's experience, in a way that can bring positive benefits to all."

Dr Eileen McGloin of InterTradeIreland and one of the report's authors said: "Entrepreneurship is recognised internationally as an important contributor to economic growth, employment, innovation and competitiveness.

"It is clear that future prosperity will rest upon our ability to encourage and foster an entrepreneurial attitude in society."