Issue - meetings

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

“1.0      Purpose of Report or Summary of main Issues

1.1       The purpose of this report is to provide the Committee with a progress update on the Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor (DBEC) and the draft action plan for the partnership.

2.0       Recommendations

2.1       The Committee is asked to:

·        Note the contents of this report and progress to date to develop the Dublin-Belfast Economic Corridor partnership.

3.0       Main report

3.1       At its meeting on 11 August 2022, members received an update on progress to support the development of the Dublin-Belfast Economic Corridor including work on the strategy and action plan. Since that meeting, the strategy has now been completed and agreed by all DBEC partners. It articulates a vision to sustainable economic growth across the region, identifying areas of focus for the partnership to address future opportunities and seeking to address any gaps in existing provision.

3.2       The vision of the strategy is to become a leading economic corridor in Europe, achieving sustainable growth through collaborative R&D, a highly skilled workforce and enabling infrastructure. This includes an ambition to be world renowned as a major international centre in growth sectors such as Professional Services, Advanced Manufacturing, ICT and Life and Health Sciences. 

3.3       The strategy articulates a number of strategic objectives for the partnership, including;

·        Increase skills and training to meet the labour requirements of the region, building on and expanding the existing workforce

·        Advocate for cross-border infrastructure to strengthen connectivity and access to markets and labour

·        Enhance cross-border collaboration in R&D and Innovation, targeting investment in high growth sectors and the green economy

·        Promote sustainable and climate-conscious growth along the corridor, aligned with councils’ development plans and wider policy objectives

·        Align with and support economic development partners to increase trade and investment along corridor

·        Market the region and elevate the DBEC brand so that the region becomes globally renowned as an attractive place to live and do business.

3.4       The strategy identified the need for dedicated resources to bring forward the key actions. As a result, recruitment is under way for two staff members.  These positions were advertised internally across all partner councils for a period of two years. The recruitment process is led by Newry, Mourne and Down District Council who currently act as secretariat. 

3.5       The action plan outlined key pillars to support effective delivery, including ways of working, governance and resourcing, and communication and marketing. Priority actions identified across the short and medium term include:

·        Undertaking further stakeholder engagement and developing a coherent marketing and communications strategy in line with the strategic objectives

·        Progressing the Shared Island feasibility study (see below) around sectoral Innovation Hubs along the corridor, with the aim of preparing an application for external funding by Q4 2023. In parallel with circular economy activities at Belfast City Council and Dublin City Council, gathering insights on circular economy initiatives along the corridor

·        Identification and preparatory scoping for relevant external funding opportunities, including Peace Plus and Shared Island

·        Undertaking  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6