Unemployment rates in Kerry rise 160% in 5 years

The number of unemployed people in Kerry jumped by a massive 160% in five years, mainly due to collapses in the construction and retail sectors.

The figures, produced by Teagasc in advance of a rural development meeting in Tralee next week, show a massive leap from 4,842 to 12,598 in the period 2006 to 2011.

However, more alarmingly, Central Statistics Office figures reveal 16,825 people signed on for unemployment benefit in Kerry in the first month of 2013.

Meanwhile, during the 2006-2011 period, numbers employed in the county dropped from 60,810 to 55,767, down 8%.

GAA pundit and former Kerry football star Pat Spillane, recently appointed chairman of the Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas (CEDRA), is now turning the spotlight on his own county.

He will be among the speakers at a public meeting to identify job creation opportunities being held next Monday night in the Institute of Technology, Tralee.

Mr Spillane, speaking in advance of the meeting, said: “The feedback and contributions we receive from the public are vital to the work of the commission in the preparation of its report.

“We need solid, practical and workable recommendations to put into the report.”

Another speaker will be Cathal O’Donoghue, head of Teagasc’s Rural Economy Development Programme and also head of the commission’s executive.

He will present up-to-date research on the impact of the economic downturn in Kerry.

On the positive side, he said the sustained growth over the past few years in the export sector, particularly food products, was bringing benefits to Kerry.

He said it was important to develop greater links between local businesses to enable them to be more competitive and reach new markets.

The Tralee meeting is part of a nationwide series being organised by the commission, which was set up to create an economic strategy for rural Ireland that will support employment and create jobs at a local level.

*www.ruralireland.ie