Enterprise Ireland launches new five-year strategy, Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally (2025-2029)

Pictured (l-r) Michael Carey, Chairman, Enterprise Ireland, Peter Burke, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Charlene Flanagan, Co-Founder of Ella & Jo, Kevin Sherry, Interim CEO, Enterprise Ireland
 

• New strategy sets out ambitious targets to increase jobs in companies supported by Enterprise Ireland to 275,000 and to increase exports to €50bn by 2029

• Enterprise Ireland’s ambition is that exporting Irish companies will become primary driver of the Irish economy

• Focus on strengthening skills and talent, funding ambition, embracing sustainability, with aim to see 1,700 new Irish-owned exporters and to support 1,000 new start-ups 

Enterprise Ireland is today publishing its new five-year strategy ‘Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally (2025-2029)’, which outlines the organisation’s aims and ambitions for the Irish enterprise base and its purpose to ‘Accelerate Sustainable Irish Business’.

Enterprise Ireland is the Irish Government organisation responsible for the development and growth of Irish enterprises in world markets, and it works with over 4,000 Irish-owned businesses to support them to start, compete, innovate and scale, and create jobs in towns and communities across Ireland.

It’s ambition over the next five years is to support Irish exporting companies to make an even greater contribution to the Irish economy through international growth and nationwide employment, with the long-term ambition that exporting Irish companies become the primary driver of the Irish economy.

This new strategy- which is aligned with the Programme for Government and the White Paper on Enterprise- sets out our four strategic objectives for the Irish enterprise base; Start, Compete, Scale and Connect.

• Start – Enhance the pipeline of innovative and scalable start-ups by supporting them with their long-term, sustainable growth ambitions.  The target is to support 1,000 new start-ups over the five-year period, from 2025 to 2029 

• Compete – Support companies to be more productive, founded on sustainability, innovation, digitalisation, operational efficiency, and strong leadership and capabilities. Key targets include a 35% reduction of CO2 emissions by 2030, a 3% annual average increase in productivity, 1,700 additional Irish-owned exporters and €2.2 billion spend on RD&I

• Scale - Increase the number of world-leading Irish companies, with targets of 275,000 employed in Enterprise Ireland supported companies by the end of 2029, €50 billion in export sales and 150 large Irish exporting companies of more than 250 employees supported by Enterprise Ireland by 2029

• Connect - To see an enhanced, internationally competitive, and interconnected enterprise and innovation ecosystem that fosters start-ups, drives enterprise growth and investment. Key targets include €55 billion spend within the domestic Irish economy, and the delivery of 10,000 enterprise engagements with Irish businesses through our research infrastructure and programmes

To advance these areas of focus, Enterprise Ireland will utilise six separate levers to achieve its goals; Funding Ambition, Igniting Innovation, Embracing Sustainability, Strengthening Skills and Talent, Maximising Global Opportunity and Driving Performance.

Peter Burke TD, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, said: “I welcome the publication of Enterprise Ireland’s new strategy today and recognise the importance of working together to ensure that Ireland provides a supportive environment for Irish businesses to scale and grow.  I am confident that the initiatives and actions outlined in this strategy will support this ambition and position Ireland ahead of emerging economic trends.

“Irish exporters are a critical component of the Irish economy, and the Government is committed to supporting this sector to scale to further heights in the years ahead. I’m pleased to see Enterprise Ireland’s ambitions under this strategy include increasing the number of internationally successfully Irish owned companies of scale, diversifying our exports and increasing the productivity of our SME sector. These efforts will all add to the resilience of Irish businesses, allowing them to continue to succeed in an increasingly competitive global market.”

Alan Dillon TD, Minister of State for Small Business and Retail and Circular Economy, said: “I’m pleased to see Enterprise Ireland’s ambitions under this strategy include increasing the productivity and competitiveness of our SME sector.  Enterprise Ireland will continue to prioritise collaboration with the Local Enterprise Offices to ensure that Irish businesses of all sizes are supported throughout their development. We are making progress in key areas such as decarbonisation, digitalisation, and innovation and it is important that we support Enterprise Ireland in delivering on our ambitions for a resilient, sustainable and regionally balanced economy in the White Paper on Enterprise.”

Niamh Smyth TD, Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation, said: “Enterprise Ireland’s Strategy “Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally” aligns closely with the objectives of the new Programme for Government. It focuses on enterprise competitiveness and productivity, enhancement of supports for start-ups, and assisting companies to scale globally. I welcome efforts being made to diversify our export markets with a target to reach €50 billion in export sales by Enterprise Ireland supported companies by 2029. I also welcome Enterprise Ireland’s commitment to continue to provide and enhance the level of targeted support, training and advice to businesses to drive the adoption of digitalisation and deployment of AI.”

Kevin Sherry, Interim CEO, Enterprise Ireland, said: “Enterprise Ireland is committed to working with Irish businesses to help them grow and succeed in international markets. Our objective in our new five-year strategy ‘Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally’, is to Accelerate Sustainable Irish Business, now and into the future. With companies supported by Enterprise Ireland now employing 234,454 people and over €34 billion in exports, this gives Enterprise Ireland a strong platform to launch our strategy, with ambitious targets for the Irish enterprise base which aims to support more Irish companies to achieve greater scale through international growth. It is our long-term ambition that exporting Irish companies will become the primary driver of the Irish economy.”

Michael Carey, Chairman, Enterprise Ireland, said: “Enterprise Ireland’s ambitious and exciting new strategy aims to increase client company export sales to €50 billion by the end of 2029, with a target to grow jobs numbers to 275,000.  Despite the global economic challenges that lie ahead, we have every confidence in the resilience and agility of the Irish enterprise base who, with our support, have proven their ability to adapt, diversify and succeed, and we look forward to continuing to work closely with our client base to deliver for the benefit of the Irish economy over the next five years.”  

A full copy of the strategy document, ‘Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally (2025-2029)’ can be found here.

ENDS

For more information, contact:

Emma Jane Hade, Senior Communications Manager, Enterprise Ireland

emma-jane.hade@enterprise-ireland.com / 087 775 8157

Nicola Corboy, Senior Communications Manager, Enterprise Ireland

Nicola.corboy@enterprise-ireland.com / 086 021 0114