More than 7,000 new jobs, 80 per cent of them in high-tech manufacturing and knowledge-based sectors, could be created in Northern Ireland as a result of investment projects negotiated by the Industrial Development Board (IDB), according to its annual report published yesterday. The report, which covers the 12 months to March 31st, 2000, gives details of 13 new inward investment projects, 20 expansions by externally-owned companies and 19 projects by indigenous firms supported by the IDB and promising a total of 7,145 new jobs.

Knowledge-based companies in software, telecommunications, network services and e-commerce could account for 92 per cent of the projected employment in new inward investment projects, the report states.

IDB chairman Dr Alan Gillespie said the figures showed the Northern Ireland economy was being reshaped rapidly by globalisation, the Internet and mobile telephony.

"Businesses old and new are having to adapt quickly to the ebusiness revolution and become more flexible, as is the IDB, to this very dynamic and challenging environment. "The IDB continues to assist companies, including those in the traditional sectors of textiles and clothing and food processing, to meet the challenge of global competition by providing the forward-looking business support that will enable them to achieve the highest standards of business excellence, to exploit e-business opportunities and to expand sales overseas," Dr Gillespie added.

He said the North's industry had performed strongly compared to trends in major economies. During the past year, manufacturing output had grown by 10.1 per cent compared to 1.7 per cent in the UK as a whole.

Exports beyond the UK - at nearly £3.4 billion sterling (€5.7 billion) - accounted for almost 37 per cent of total sales. The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, Sir Reg Empey, said the IDB's international marketing campaign and its work with existing firms was helping transform the region into a vibrant and increasingly globally-competitive economy.

"There is a growing recognition that greater political stability and the Executive's pro-business approach, combined with the quality of the workforce here and excellent telecommunications, offer substantial opportunities for companies seeking to expand into European and, indeed, global markets," the minister said.