A US-based Mayo businessman has donated £250,000 to the establishment of a university outreach campus in his native town of Kiltimagh.
Multimillionaire Mr Tom Flatley owns numerous hotels, shopping centres, and convalescent homes across the US.
Last weekend he informed the Kiltimagh local development company IRD that he was glad to support the unique initiative between the small town and NUI Galway. The £8 million project was established to help rural communities combat the challenges of isolation, decline and disadvantage. Similar projects have been successful in the US, Japan and Britain.
Launching the plan in NUI Galway yesterday, the college president, Dr Iognaid O Muircheartaigh, said the project, involving the rural community of Kiltimagh and the university campus in Galway, would work because it would bring mutual benefits.
A site just outside Kiltimagh has been chosen for the outreach campus. It will be Ireland's first Institute of New Economics and will provide a range of social and economic degrees for up to 400 students.
Mr Joe Kelly of Kiltimagh IRD, says the development is hugely significant for the town.
"In practical terms, this will mean that if a business person in Kiltimagh needs advice or expertise in marketing, he or she has easy access to lecturers at NUIG."