Job creation may have "peaked" in the Gaeltacht, and a labour shortage in some areas has already affected overall figures for new posts in the past year, according to Udaras na Gaeltachta.
Policy will now have to focus on quality, rather than quantity, in relation to new employment opportunities, the authority's chief executive, Mr Ruan O Bric, said yesterday. Presenting the authority's endof-year review for 1999 at its headquarters in Furbo, Co Galway, Mr O Bric said that there was an "urgent need" to "redefine and shape the nature of the Gaeltacht for the future" so as to retain a young educated workforce in the region. A strategic plan is currently in preparation, aimed at identifying the social, environmental, cultural and linguistic needs of the Gaeltacht at a time when there have been calls for the Udaras to be given greater authority in relation to planning.
The authority "broke even" last year, creating 1,042 new jobs and recording 1,033 job losses. Many of these losses were in the low-skilled traditional sectors and were often affected by staff moving away from the Gaeltacht area to take up opportunities elsewhere. These break-even figures compare favourably with patterns emerging for similar geographical and economically developed areas in the rest of the State, and was achieved against a background of restrictions in supply in the labour market, Mr O Bric said.
The losses rose above the predicted 10 per cent annual fallout, and reflected a continuing decline in the clothing/knitwear/ textiles sector, which represented just 11 per cent of total employment compared to 17 per cent in 1993, Mr O Bric said. In addition, there had been the recent closure of some long-established traditional manufacturing companies, such as Dianorm and Uisce Glan Teo, and the imminent closure of Elce Teo, which has provided steady employment for over 20 years.
Other traditional industries are expected to come under pressure, he forecast. While there was limited scope in certain Gaeltacht areas to absorb major new projects, several locations had been identified for special emphasis. These include Achill and Belmullet in Co Mayo, Carna in Co Galway, Dingle in Co Kerry, and the Rosses and south-west Donegal.
The national trend towards replacing traditional manufacturing jobs in rural areas with modern services jobs in urban areas posed a particular challenge for the authority. "Gaeltacht areas are all substantially rural and there is currently limited scope for significant growth in modern services jobs, because of skills shortages and telecommunications infrastructural deficiencies," the chief executive acknowledged.
"We are, however, working with a number of Gaeltacht companies on the development of e-commerce." In relation to planning, there was a need for a series of "town centres" offering the physical and social infrastructure that was attracting young people to urban areas.
Mr Tadhg O hEallaithe, the authority's new chairman, said that the new board was taking up office at a "critical time" in the history of the Gaeltacht. Welcoming the proposed establishment of a Gaeltacht Commission to examine this issue, Mr O hEallaithe said that infrastructural deficiencies which were not within the remit of the authority had to be addressed.
In addition to basic infrastructure, there was a need for a range of social supports, including services and physical facilities. "Having a dedicated agency and budget for the Gaeltacht is not a panacea for these other issues, the remedy of which is part of the overall responsibility of Government," he said.
Mr O hEallaithe cited as an example the emphasis on developing the railway network in the National Development Plan. This would effectively "by-pass" the Gaeltacht, he said, which was in need of improved roads.
Mr Seosamh O Cuaig, an independent member of the new board, said that there was a need for a "real regional authority", rather than the structures currently in place.
