Abu Dhabi embassy to tap into Gulf wealth
The new embassy will be opened in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE.
Mr Martin said the embassy was necessary because of the “significance of the Gulf in terms of sovereign wealth funds, in terms of economic development”.
“Many Irish companies are exporting their technology and services there. Enterprise Ireland has identified Abu Dhabi as a place where we should have stronger diplomatic presence,” he said. It will be Ireland’s second embassy in the Gulf region, the first being in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Cabinet approval for the new embassy was first granted in March 2007, two months after the then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern had led a successful trade mission to the Gulf. But it has taken some time for the plans to come to fruition.
Mr Martin said that, given the current budgetary constraints, the new embassy would be opened from existing resources. He acknowledged, however, that Ireland’s diplomatic strength in other, less prioritised parts of the world may be reduced in order to provide the funding for Abu Dhabi.
The minister said the country’s network of embassies and consulates could provide a valuable resource to Irish companies in the current trading climate.
“In the present straitened circumstances, we’re laying very strong priority on the utilisation of our embassies and consulates as an economic resource for Irish companies and for Irish state agencies working abroad,” he said. “We’ll be assisting the other agencies strongly in the coming months to contribute to the economic side of the equation.”
Meanwhile, the minister said his department was examining how the Irish diaspora could be harnessed “more effectively” in the future. “Similar to how Israel has done it, we need to harness that [resource] more for the development of the country in the future,” Mr Martin said. The department is currently preparing a paper on the issue.
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