National Development Plan - Lessons must be learned from NDP

Despite the glowing commendation afforded the current National Development Plan (NDP) by Defence Minister Willie O’Dea when announcing its successor, the present seven-year strategy attracted quite a share of criticism.

It was not unexpected that the plan, which runs out at the end of next year having been launched in 1999, would beget another and this is what was announced yesterday by the minister on behalf of the Government.

The current NDP involved investment of over €52 billion of public and EU funds and was hailed as probably the largest and most ambitious plan ever conceived for the country.