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€25m of contracts signed during Enterprise Ireland trade mission to Singapore and Malaysia led by Minister Bruton

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD today Thursday concludes a four-day trade and investment mission to Singapore and Malaysia during which contracts worth €25 million and significant new business partnerships were announced across the financial services, ICT and education sectors.

First-ever joint trade mission with UK and NI Ministers to Singapore a success – Bruton

ASEAN region offers serious opportunities for Ireland – Enterprise Ireland

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD today [Thursday] concludes a four-day trade and investment mission to Singapore and Malaysia during which contracts worth €25 million and significant new business partnerships were announced across the financial services, ICT and education sectors. These announcements underline the growing opportunities for Irish companies in the developing ASEAN region (Association of South East Asian nations).

The mission of 42 Irish companies was organised by Enterprise Ireland in close cooperation with IDA Ireland, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Embassies of Ireland in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

While in Singapore, Minister Bruton also led the first ever joint Irish, UK and Northern Ireland trade mission, along with UK Transport Minister Stephen Hammond and Northern Ireland Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster.

Among the announcements made during the mission were:

  • Tango Telecom (Limerick) announced a major expansion deal with Robi Axiata, one of the three largest mobile operators in Bangladesh.
  • cut-e, a world leader in the design and implementation of innovative online tests and questionnaires for recruitment, selection and development, signed a deal to provide online psychometric assessments to Morgan Advanced Materials in Asia.
  • ICDL Asia, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ECDL Foundation, announced they have entered into an agreement with RVi Group Singapore to make ICDL available throughout Myanmar.
  • Quest Computing (Dublin) announced that its ASEAN subsidiary, AIMS Software, is partnering with Tech Mahindra to provide joint Sales and Marketing focus in addition to local System Integration delivery capability.
  • Atlantic Projects Company signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Malaysian company Serba Dinamik Group.

Among the more than 30 meetings and events which Minister Bruton participated in during the 4-day mission were:

  • An intensive programme of events aimed at facilitating increased sales by Irish companies operating in South East Asia
  • Meetings with the Singapore Minister for Trade and Industry, the Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of International Trade and Industry and Governor of the Central Bank
  • A series of interviews and events with South East Asian regional and national media aimed at communicating Ireland’s recovery story
  • Visits to the Singapore Airshow, ST Aerospace, CRH’s new Asia Hub offices, Creganna Tactx Medical’s Singapore facility as well as the new Mead Johnson infant formula manufacturing facility where Wicklow based company Dortek has supplied and installed over €1.3m of ultra hygienic doors
  • Meetings with SE Asian multinational companies considering investing in Ireland, organised by IDA Ireland
  • Reflecting the importance of the strong relationship Ireland has with Malaysia in the education sector, Minister Bruton visited the Education in Ireland office in Tunku Abdul Rahman University College and Kolej Mara Banting, the elite feeder college for Malay students.

Speaking from Kuala Lumpur before departing for Ireland, Minister Bruton said: "Supporting increased exports by Irish companies is at the very heart of our Action Plan for Jobs, and we have put in place a range of new and increased supports to deliver this goal, including doubling the number of trade missions. Growing markets like South East Asia offer huge opportunities for Irish companies.

“The contracts announced and the partnerships signed during the last four days clearly demonstrate the scale of opportunity for Irish companies willing to commit to doing business in this vast region of 600million people. This trade mission to Singapore and Malaysia is part of a continued drive by Government to target growth markets and support exporting companies to sell more of their products and services abroad, and help sustain and create jobs in Ireland.

"I am also delighted to say that the first joint trade mission by Ireland, Northern Ireland and UK was highly successful. It attracted an impressive list of companies that demonstrated our considerable combined strengths in the aerospace sector at Asia’s largest airshow. I am confident this initiative will lead to enhanced opportunities for our companies in this important sector, and ultimately more jobs in Ireland”.

Julie Sinnamon, CEO of Enterprise Ireland, who accompanied Minister Bruton on the mission, commented:

“ASEAN offers serious opportunities for Ireland. Irish companies and education institutions are winning more and more business in the region matched by an increasing interest among ASEAN companies in Ireland as a location for setting up new operations to target the European market. Trade missions are a key part of Enterprise Ireland’s strategy to grow Irish export sales by opening doors, making high-level introductions and helping our client companies to exploit the opportunities that exist in global markets.”

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For further information contact:

Press Office, DJEI, Tel: 01 631 2200, email: press.office@djei.ie

NOTES FOR EDITORS

Centred on the aviation sector, and involving the participation of more than 20 companies from Northern Ireland and Great Britain as well as companies from Ireland, the joint programme in Singapore included a round-table discussion with regional Aviation Experts, a site visit to ST Aerospace, and a joint stand at the Singapore Airshow – Asia’s largest airshow. For both the UK and Ireland the aerospace sector is a key part of long term economic plans.

During the four-day programme Minister Bruton held more than 30 meetings and attended events in Singapore and Malaysia aimed at supporting Irish companies increase their sales in South East Asia, as well as promoting Ireland as a destination for ASEAN multinational investment. The Minister held high-level meetings with his counterpart - the Minister for Trade and Industry in Singapore, and in Malaysia met with the new Minister for Education who is also Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister of International Trade and Industry and the Governor of the Central Bank.

In Singapore, the Minister visited CRH’s new Asia Hub offices, and Creganna Tactx Medical’s Singapore facility. He also visited the new Mead Johnson infant formula manufacturing facility where Wicklow based company Dortek has supplied and installed over €1.3m of ultra hygienic doors. Mead Johnson is one of the top 5 infant nutrition companies in the world. The Minister also addressed a Banking and Financial Services Workshop, and met with a number of the young Irish business diaspora living and working in Singapore.

Reflecting the importance of the strong relationship Ireland has with Malaysia in the Education sector, Minister Bruton visited the Education in Ireland office in Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR) University College where he enjoyed informal exchanges with students, and Kolej Mara Banting (KMB), the elite feeder college for Malay students.

The Action Plan for Jobs includes a commitment by Government to carry out an intensive programme of Ministerial-led trade and investment missions.

Since the Plan was launched in early 2012 the number of trade missions led by Enterprise Ireland, for example, has doubled, from an average of 8.5 (2007-2011) to an average of 17 (2012 and scheduled for 2013).

This is Minister Bruton’s 19th major trade/investment mission in almost three years since taking office in March 2011

The 18 previous missions undertaken comprise:

  • Six IDA investment missions to the USA, three to the east coast, two to the west coast and one encompassing the East Coast, South and Mid-West
  • Six Enterprise Ireland trade missions, one to Texas, one to the south-eastern USA, one to India, one to Saudi Arabia and India, one to Canada and one to France accompanied by hundreds of Irish companies looking to break into new export markets
  • A 7-day joint EI/IDA mission to China led by the Taoiseach in 2012, and a further joint EI/IDA mission to China and Japan led by Minister Bruton in 2013
  • A EI mission to the Gulf led by the Taoiseach in January 2014
  • A 5-day EI/IDA trip to the west coast of the USA built around St Patrick’s Day 2012
  • A 4-day mission to Germany around St Patrick’s Day 2013, and a 2-day mission to Germany around St Patrick’s Day 2011, including a series of meetings arranged by IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Bord Bia and Tourism Ireland.

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