Task force reports on ways to halt west Offaly decline

Few areas in the State have paid a heavier price in terms of job losses than west Co Offaly, which has suffered serious population…

Few areas in the State have paid a heavier price in terms of job losses than west Co Offaly, which has suffered serious population decline in recent years.

Over the last 20 years, the area around Ferbane, which has an estimated population of 11,700, has lost some 1,000 jobs in the ESB and Bord na Mona.

It took another blow in March when the ESB announced the closure of the Ferbane peat power station and the imminent closure of the Shannonbridge station.

Taking the ESB jobs and the dependent jobs in Bord na Mona, which supplies the peat for the stations, this will mean the loss of a further 300 jobs.

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On Monday, a task force set up by Offaly County Council issued its "A Revival Strategy for West Offaly 2000-2006" report, which made recommendations to halt the decline of the area.

In addition to the loss of ESB and Bord na Mona jobs, the decline in agriculture has also hit the area badly. Some 22 per cent of the labour force farms land, compared to a national average of 10 per cent.

Combine this with the fact that less than 5 per cent of the population have third-level qualifications, compared to 20 per cent nationally, and the extent of the problem becomes more apparent.

The authors of the report - four local councillors, the programme manager of West Offaly Integrated Development Partnership and Mr Jack Keyes, the director of community and enterprise with Offaly County Council - want significant industrial development in the area.

They also recommend the development of an enterprise culture and a proactive link with third-level institutions.

It recommended that both ESB and Bord na Mona should lessen the impact of the most recent job losses by speeding up the building of a replacement power station at Shannonbridge.

It also recommended that a significant fund should be made available to both companies to facilitate the redevelopment of the area.

This fund should be administered by Offaly County Council in partnership with local interests.

The launch of the report was made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, who said it was perfectly in line with Government thinking on rural development.

The report urged that nearly £70 million be invested over the next six years in areas such as infrastructure, agriculture, rural development, education and in retraining workers in the area.