Dubai: With Britain preparing to leave the European Union and its government eager to reach trade deals with international partners, trying to market its unique skills will become more critical than ever.
For Alastair Hamilton, the chief executive of Invest Northern Ireland, it’s his responsibility to make sure Northern Ireland remains firmly on the map, that its businesses can compete on a global scale, and that the region hits above its weight compared to the other regions of the United Kingdom.
“Northern Ireland is the most business friendly, cost effective destination within the United Kingdom to do business — with the best educated workforce that you’ll find,” he tells Gulf News during a whistle stop tour through the Middle East last week.
For a region of 1.8 million people, Northern Ireland is performing strongly, thanks to a network of offices around the globe that support investment and help grow its businesses.
The figures are impressive. Total exports from Northern Ireland last year amounted to £7.4 billion (Dh34.1 billion) — with £221.2 million coming into the six Gulf Cooperation Council nations in the 12 months ending September 2016. In UAE terms, Northern Ireland did £91 million in business last year, up 7 per cent on 2015.
Across the broader Middle East, North Africa and India region, businesses from Northern Ireland rack up about £500 million in exports annually. “Yes there are challenges,” Hamilton says. “The biggest challenge is getting our message out there. We are a small country. We are only 1.8 million people.
“The key challenge I have is that not enough of our companies are in international markets,” he says. “For far too long they have been too dependent on home markets, whether that’s Northern Ireland, the island of Ireland or right across the United Kingdom. We’re seeking to get them into international markets and that’s what Invest Northern Ireland is all about.”
Strong tradition
Consider that one third of all aeroplanes seats globally are manufactured in Northern Ireland, carpets and linens from the region grace most many hotels in there, and any “Game of Thrones” fan will be familiar with scenery and sets filmed in Belfast and at locations across the region.
On London’s streets, many of the red Routemaster “Boris” buses are Northern Ireland built — as are the wings for Bombardier C Series planes. Historically, the region has a strong tradition of light and machine manufacturing, with about 55 per cent of the £91 million coming in that sector, and a significant portion of that coming ion the materials handling industry.
Hotels and tourism too is strong sector for Hamilton and his team who market the region into the Gulf and India.
“Northern Ireland is the most successful part of the UK today on an inward-investment basis,” Hamilton says. “We are a centre of excellence for cybersecurity; the most attractive base for legal services on an inward investment; and Belfast — voted for the past two years as the most business friendly small and medium sized city in the UK.”
So what happens then with Brexit, Britain’s decision to leave the European Union, kicks in by 2020. What’s the effect on the region?
“Brexit is both an opportunity and a challenge,” Hamilton told Gulf News. “All of those things that have attracted international investors to come to Northern Ireland are around our people at its heart, he says. “The highest percentage of young people going on to higher education in the UK is in Northern Ireland. Our education results turn out about 10 percentage points ahead of the rest of the UK, and we have the youngest, fastest growing population in the UK. You combine all of those together and that’d what drives our inward investment proposition. A really young, enthusiastic and capable and determined people.”
In the past, these would have left Ireland’s shores, but are now staying to build a strong future for the region.
Security and technology
The region, too, is strategically located, sharing the UK’s only land border with the Republic of Ireland to the south. Post Brexit, the UK has stated its clear intent to keep that border as frictionless as possible to maintain as a free flow of goods, services and people on the island as possible. At present, 30 per cent of all exports from the region go south, and 30,000 people a day cross the border to work for companies on either side.
The region is also strong in security and technology, and the expertise developed and acquired by its long association with Northern Telecom laid the groundwork for growth and innovation in the field.
“Game of Thrones has been a whole transformation for all of Northern Ireland,” Hamilton says. “The film studio where the Game of Thrones is being filmed was a paint hall in the shipyard where the Titanic was built. It’s actually the largest film studio in Europe. They loved the location, the castles, the forests, the coast and all of Northern Ireland scenery that has now become so synonymous with Game of Thrones.”
He says an important element is the infrastructure and expertise the production has created gives the region a technical edge. Indeed, part of that expertise has been put into use at Dubai resorts and theme parks by Deluxe Group from Co Armagh.
“Northern Ireland is the most successful part of the UK today on an inward-investment basis,” Hamilton says. “We are a centre of excellence for cybersecurity, the most attractive base for legal services on an inward investment — and Belfast — voted for the past two years as the most business friendly small and medium sized city in the UK.”
Collaborations with Middle East
Increasingly, Northern Ireland is becoming globally recognised as a place to learn. Queens University Belfast, the UK’s ninth oldest is part of the prestigious Russell Group of research-intensive universities and has enjoyed successful collaborations in the Middle East for many years. From collaborating with the Mohammad Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences (MBRU) in Dubai Healthcare City to attracting post graduate students from Oman who have recently completed their MSC in Nursing and Midwifery at Queen’s and are due to return to Belfast in July for graduation. Ulster University has successfully collaborated with SAAD College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences in Saudi Arabia for nearly a decade now. There are also many excellent further education colleges and British-council approved English language schools. Campbell College, founded in 1894 and one of Northern Ireland’s most eminent schools will also be in the UAE in March of this year recruiting students who wish to come to Belfast to study for GCSE and A Level examinations in preparation for university life in the UK. It’s an area in which we haven’t performed as well as others in the past, but we realise it has enormous potential, not just to promote Northern Ireland as a place to learn, but also as a place to visit and enjoy, so we are expanding our Dubai team and adopting a more proactive approach.
