THE HEAD OF IBM Ireland, Peter O’Neill, has called on the Government to prioritise investment in education to avoid damaging Ireland’s appeal as a base for multinational companies.
“Greater co-operation” between universities and institutions of technology, or a possible merger of some third-level institutions, should be on the Government’s agenda to prevent a decline in competitiveness, said Mr O’Neill.
Speaking on his appointment as president of the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland, he said developing and retaining talent was Ireland’s “trump card” for drawing foreign direct investment, but there were “warning signs” that austerity measures were eroding the State’s previous investment in education.
Mr O’Neill cited Irish universities slipping in the Times Higher Education World University rankings as evidence of “a very worrying trend”.
“I’m not saying that certain institutions are not up to scratch,” he said. “But when you look at the number of universities and the number of ITs we have, it’s very difficult to see how we can get the resources we need to have centres of excellence.”
Mr O’Neill said the American Chamber recognised that the Government was constrained in terms of its financial position, but that the economy had been similarly gloomy 30 years ago when a decision was made to bolster the education sector. “That investment has paid off handsomely.”
Mr O’Neill, who has been managing director of IBM Ireland since May 2010, said he was “very optimistic” about Ireland’s prospects for attracting foreign direct investment in the year ahead, citing new jobs announcements at Accenture and Allergan yesterday.
Although the euro zone debt crisis continued to bring unwelcome uncertainties for multinationals considering FDI strategies, Ireland’s reputation has not suffered as a result of the EU-IMF finance agreement, he added.
“We’re in a better place now than we were this time last year. In terms of Ireland’s reputation, we are in a good place. Perversely, we would say there is a better perception of Ireland internationally than we would have ourselves.”
