All the evidence points to a direct relationship between educational expenditure and economic development in the transformation of Ireland's industrial performance over the last generation. Looking ahead, it is quite clear that this trend will continue, creating a demand for skilled personnel to service the needs of high-technology sectors and maintain international competitiveness. The Government has, therefore, been prudent as well as far-seeing in deciding so rapidly to create the £250 million Education Technology Investment Fund announced yesterday.
The initiative focuses public attention very usefully on a crucial requirement of further economic progress in this State. Already shortages of skilled workers have shown up in many parts of the State and across several different industrial sectors - notably in computing, information technology and pharmaceuticals. Despite the expansion of third-level and vocational educational facilities since the 1960s - embracing a substantially greater proportion of each age cohort in post-secondary training - there is still much ground to be made up.
Higher level institutions are ill-prepared to provide the necessary training and skills. Technical and vocational education have, until recently, been comparatively neglected, while apprenticeship arrangements lag far behind those in the continental European economies with which Ireland will increasingly be in competition. Research and development expenditures have been scandalously low in Irish universities and clearly underdeveloped in both multinational and Irish-owned industry.
The Government measures announced yesterday are alert to these policy and structural shortcomings. They are intended to renew and modernise infrastructure in third-level institutions, especially in the technological sphere; to channel activity and funding to areas where emerging skills needs are identified; and to invest in, and promote, innovation as a stimulus to economic growth.
It is proposed to create new institutions to put these objectives into practice. They include a new partnership forum between business, educational, trade union, governmental and developmental sectors to examine skills shortages and issues. The Government is calling on private companies to contribute to the new fund, matching the Government's commitment. The fund will be managed by the National Treasury Management Agency, which has a strong reputation for reducing public indebtedness and deserves an opportunity to demonstrate a wider expertise.
This is a medium-term programme intended to address shortages and anticipate emergent needs of a more highly developed economy. Compared to the long-term requirements, the proposed sums of money involved are comparatively modest. As important as providing resources to ensure immediate skills shortages are met, is the task of analysing Ireland's development needs strategically and in a comparative and competitive perspective. If human-centred growth is to be sustained over the next generation it will be necessary to bring such ideas much more to the centre of public attention and decision-making.