Address by Mr. Noel Treacy, T.D. Minister for Science, and Technology and Commerce, at the Presentation of Tourism Enterprise Certificates to the Participants from Roscommon and Westmeath County Enterprise Boards at Strokestown Park House on 20th July, 1998 at 7.30pm

I am delighted to be here to present Tourism Enterprise Certificates to the Participants of the Roscommon and Westmeath County Enterprise Boards, as I am aware that the Enterprise Boards are totally dedicated to identifying the needs of the local economy. I welcome any initiative taken to improve the local economic landscape.

Tourism, as you well know, with fine examples such as Strokestown Park House, Clonalis House in Castlerea and many others, is a growing sector in our National economy. This is particularly evident in County Roscommon which is renowned for its high quality physical environment which can be positively used as an inducement to budding entrepreneurs.

The successful growth and the future of Irish Tourism is dependant on investment by both the public and private sectors. There is a wealth of financial opportunities and development supports available. One must recognise the strengths of the Roscommon-Westmeath region to the successful implementation of any plan.

These strengths consist of :

• The Central Location of this Region, with good access to the main centres of population.
• Both counties have a modernised telecommunications system with National and International linkages.
• A well-educated and adaptable young population.
• It also has a large emigrant population , which should be utilised as valuable resource.

Roscommon and Westmeath CEB's sponsored this Tourism Enterprise Development Programme in collaboration with CERT and together they co-ordinated this Programme. It is regarded as a highly successfully partnership, targeting the needs of micro-enterprises, within their functional areas.

Roscommon and Westmeath County Enterprise Boards were established in 1993 to develop indigenous potential and stimulate economic activity at local level through the range of support services provided for local enterprise initiatives. The primary objective identified for Roscommon and Westmeath County Enterprise Boards is"to focus development support on local indigenous enterprise so as to build a local economy of real strength and permanence giving jobs to local people".

The County Enterprise Boards are a key element in both our small business and our local development policy. Indeed they have proved themselves to be a successful, innovative and effective local development structure.

Distinct from other agencies, they are endowed with the capacity to generate and increase awareness of enterprise at local level which had previously been unsupported, until the County Enterprise Board system was first established, by me, in 1992.

Consequently, the County Enterprise Boards are in a key position to be of a primary influence to identify and to meet the needs of individuals who wish to respond to the challenge of developing an enterprise culture. This emphasises Roscommon and Westmeath County Enterprise Boards' core value - to generate job creation at grass roots level.

Thus the Boards act as a single-point-of-contact for a whole range of information on enterprise services, assisting small businesses in meeting their management development training needs.

The presentation of this Enterprise Management Certificate bears this out, indicating that the provision of a soft support programme is a very important aspect in the support of local entrepreneurs if we are to maintain and encourage all of those who are willing to consider business start-ups and take the risks in setting up their own enterprise.

I know that this programme has been very worthwhile and I am sure that it will be beneficial to all of the Participants in their future endeavours, learning key skills such as:

• Business and Management Skills
• Marketing
• Project Development
• Finances
• The production of a realistic and well reasoned market driven tourism plan

The high level of success achieved by County Enterprise Boards throughout the country is very impressive and more importantly their potentiality has been revealed within a rather short period.

For the years 1994-1997, Roscommon and Westmeath CEB's have created 469 full time and 133 part time jobs. In the same period, the grants drawn down amounted to £2,259,068.

The total investment in the development of the Irish Tourism product under the EU operational programme for tourism 1994-1999 is estimated at IR£652m. This level of investment is the key to providing new opportunities in the tourism business for those who are prepared to undertake a move into entrepreneurialship.

Since 1992, the employment figures for the Tourism sector has increased by 24%. The aforementioned figure is impressive and if anything, it should entice people to enter this very attractive market.

I know that the Enterprise Boards have been proactive in developing a range of services to meet the needs of this midland area and I would like to complement the members of the Boards, their Evaluation Committees, Chief Executives, and staff, for their commitment to enterprise development since their establishment just five years ago.

Roscommon and Westmeath County Enterprise Boards have been actively involved in the promotion of an enterprise culture through their support for community enterprise groups throughout their areas. The Boards recognises that Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries which provides excellent opportunities for all those who wish to develop small to medium enterprises. The Enterprise Boards recognise the need for innovative and creative ideas for the Tourism sector to flourish.

The County Enterprise Boards have played, and are continuing to play, their part in this exciting adventure, providing to the next generation an introduction to an enterprise culture in order to avail of the unique opportunity for developing new and existing enterprise in tourism and hospitality. I would like, once again, to complement the Board on its efforts to date and to wish all of the participants every success in their future endeavours.

I would also like to take this opportunity to present an ISO 9000 Certificate to Vincent Dwyer Surfacing Ltd.

Companies or organisations in all industry/economic sectors have identified the ISO 9000 standard as a strategic management tool, facilitating effective control over design, manufacturing and service delivery processes.

Applying an ISO 9000 System for Quality Management within an organisation results in significant benefits in many areas including:

• Management effectiveness through structured, organised and defined authorities, responsibilities and reporting structures.
• Operating efficiency through clear documented practices and procedures.
• Cost reduction through the identification and elimination of potential system deficiencies and product failures.
• Increased marketability through the identification of a registered company with a quality philosophy and international standard.
• Customer satisfaction through the receipt of enhanced service or product quality levels.

As ISO 9000 is a harmonised European and international standard, certification to the standard opens up international markets to companies where previously technical trade barriers may have been an impediment.

The EU has made ISO 9000 a key element in its drive to remove technical barriers to trade in Europe and it forms an integral part of demonstrating compliance to New Approach Directives and to the use of the CE Marking on products.

Vincent Dwyer Surfacing Ltd. commenced trading in 1994 and was assisted by Roscommon County Enterprise Board by way of Employment Grants. It's employment has now risen to 16 people. The company promote a range of alternative surfacing for all types of footpaths and trafficked areas under the Ecoflex range.

Ecoflex is a fibre reinforced slurry surfacing ideal for most footways as it has the properties of regulating the existing surface and applying a final layer at the same time. The material gives an exceptional resistance to deformation under load and is ideally suited for heavy duty applications of footways, Cul de Sacs and trafficked areas.

The main market for his product is Local Authorities through Ireland and commercial entities who have extensive parking areas such as Iarnrod Eireann, Hotels, Sporting organisations and many more.

The company participated in an ISO 9000 Group Programme organised and funded by Roscommon County Enterprise Board in association with FAS. This is the very first company grant aided from Roscommon County Enterprise Board which has received the ISO 9000 Standard Certificate.

I would like to sincerely congratulate Messrs Vincent Dwyer, John Kelly and John Freeman for their initiative and foresight in applying for the ISO 9000 Standard Certificate. You and your team deserve full credit for being the first company in this area to be recognised as producing a product suitable for the international market to such a high standard.

This is an evening of success. The Presentations which I am making symbolise everything that is so positive in this historic and beautiful midland area and reflects so well on two excellent Local County Enterprise Boards.