Seven economic sectoral action plans announced

The Department for the Economy has developed sectoral action plans for seven sectors which it believes harness the most potential for job creation and economic growth in the next decade.

In February 2024, Minister for the Economy Conor Murphy MLA set out his vision for the Northern Ireland economy under the four named pillars of creating good jobs, promoting regional balance, raising productivity and living standards, and reducing carbon emissions.

In that context, the Department for the Economy (DfE) has set out seven areas where action can be undertaken to meet these four pillars.

With innovation seen as a key enabler to future proof the local economy across sectors, DfE, in June 2024, announced sectoral action plans for the agritech; advanced manufacturing, materials, and engineering (AMME); fintech and financial services; life and health sciences; low carbon/net zero; screen industries; and software and cyber sectors.

Agritech

1. To provide collaboration opportunities for agritech stakeholders, DfE will:

• utilise the Agri-Food Growth Deal Working Group for collaboration opportunities (commencing in 2025).

• create a Northern Ireland ‘diamond’ [a network between government, academia, and the private sector] to foster collaboration between agritech stakeholders for research and policy (action commenced).

2. To ensure a skills pipeline which can harness a prosperous agritech sector, DfE will:

• introduce a new skills pipeline with emphasis on STEM (action commenced).

• apply learnings from research and recommendations arising from Women in STEM Action Plan (commencing in 2024).

3. To promise growth while adhering to net zero and necessary innovations, DfE will:

• expand capital grants to improve productivity for food and drink processors (delivery time TBC).

• encourage the adoption of smart data practices (action commenced).

• encourage businesses to develop and implement sustainability reports (action commenced).

4. To ensure access to finance and export support while promoting regional balance, DfE will:

• grow the sector’s global footprint through targeted export and trade promotion activity (commencing 2025).

• maximise uptake of alternative funding sources including from the Irish Government and the EU (commencing in 2024).

Advanced manufacturing, materials, and engineering (AMME)

1. To tackle fragmentation within the AMME sector and enhance strategic alignment and points of influence to maximise Northern Ireland’s AMME capabilities and create a higher productivity sector, DfE will:

• introduce a devolved nations manufacturing network seeking to deepen collaboration with the UK Government (action commenced).

• consider the benefit of a super cluster to grow the sector as part of a wider DfE cluster policy (commencing 2024).

2. To ensure a future facing and inclusive skills pipeline for employees into the AMME sector and raise productivity across the sector, DfE will:

• improve pathways and career awareness (commencing in 2024).

• identify the skills deficits emerging from new innovative and green technologies (commencing in 2024).

3. To integrate and align innovation support while mitigating supply chain challenges, promoting net zero and the ambition for lower carbon emissions across the sector, DfE will:

• introduce innovation infrastructure in collaboration with delivery partners from the public and private sector (action commenced).

• encourage innovation via cross border collaboration and north-south knowledge transfer with Intertrade Ireland (action commenced).

4. To support indigenous businesses to grow and encourage regional balance and increased productivity throughout Northern Ireland, DfE will:

• grow local exports through identifying and maximising the opportunities of dual market access (action commenced).

• increase in foreign direct investment to areas of economic disadvantage (action commenced).

• establish investment zones (commencing 2024).

Fintech and financial services

1. To supporting the sector to grow at scale and support delivery of the Minister’s priorities in relation to productivity, regional balance, better jobs and reducing carbon emissions, DfE will:

• develop cross border opportunities with the Fintech Corridor and Enterprise Ireland (commenced).

• work with Invest NI to identify areas of strength and weakness to ensure the potential for new emerging areas is maximised (commencing in 2024).

2. To support growth in the sector through targeted FDI, DfE will:

• work on skills development to explore any niche emerging training and skills requirements of the fintech sector (commencing 2024)

• widening participation by exploring opportunities to tackle barriers to entry to the sector (commencing 2024)

3. To support R&D, entrepreneurs, start-ups, and scale ups to grow to scale, DfE will:

• facilitate access to later stage private sector funding to support scaling (commencing in 2024)

4. To encourage trade and investment, DfE will:

• seek to attract focused FDI investment that will support growth in fintech and financial services (commenced)

• develop and showcase a suite of subregional economic priorities as appropriate (Commenced: Publication of subregional action plan due in autumn 2024).

Low carbon/net zero

1. To promote the green economy in Northern Ireland, DfE will:

• develop propositions to position Northern Ireland as a green investment location and partner of choice for net zero advancements (action commenced)

• identify and maximise opportunities from dual market access through the Windsor Framework (action commenced)

2. To ensure workers are skilled up, DfE will:

• facilitate an industry-led Green Skills Delivery Plan based on the Energy Skills Audit published in June 2023 (commencing 2024)

3. To promote research and innovation in net zero technologies, processes, and products, DfE will:

• identify and promote research opportunities available for emerging and innovative net zero technologies, processes and products (commencing in 2024/2025)

4. To assist businesses to decarbonise and adopt greener business practices and establish funding support for green technologies, DfE will:

• continued delivery of Invest NI’s energy and resource programmes including the new Energy Efficiency Capital Grant, the Resource Efficiency Capital Grant, and sustainability plans (action commenced).

• establish a net zero accelerator fund that will provide government support to complement private investment for the development of innovative net zero technologies (commencing 2026).

Life and health sciences (LHS)

1. To tackle fragmentation within the LHS sector and enhance strategic alignment between stakeholders, DfE will:

• assist in the initial development of the Future Medicines Institute (FMI) and ensure that appropriate governance structures and management of funding are in place (action commenced).

• collaborate with the Department of Health to enable economic opportunities from health innovation (action commenced).

2. To ensure a future facing and inclusive skills pipeline for the LHS sector, DfE will:

• identify transferrable skills i.e. data analytics, AI and wraparound business, and entrepreneurship skills for LHS students (commencing 2025).

• improve talent retention and harness international diaspora to mentor and connect Northern Ireland startups to international markets (commencing 2025).

3. To foster innovation in the LHS sector, DfE will:

• improve use of health data and alignment with City and Growth Deal investments (action commenced).

• Ensure sectoral alignment with decarbonisation (commencing 2024).

4. To attract trade and investment, DfE will:

• support dual market access building on work by the DfE/DoH Medical Devices Regulatory Working Group (action commenced).

• attract FDI via opportunities provided by current developments in the sector such as the Future Medicines Institute and City and Growth Deal investments (commencing 2024).

Screen industries

1. For Northern Ireland to have the strongest screen industry outside of London in the UK and Ireland and to deliver an economic return to Northern Ireland of £431 million over a four year period (2022-26), DfE will:

• continue to roll out the Northern Ireland Screen Fund (action commenced)

• collaborate with studio owners to enhance and maximise the use of their facilities (action commenced)

2. To create opportunities to increase the number of new entrants to the industry and to develop the skillset of existing freelance crew, DfE will:

• continue delivery of the CINE scheme which is aimed at individuals from underrepresented ethnic minority, socioeconomic, and disabled communities (action commenced)

• input into Digital Skills Action Plan 2024-2034, highlighting work of creative learning centres in supporting schools, teachers and young people in delivery of creative and digital skills (action commenced)

3. To encourage implementation of new screen technologies and techniques to maintain an economically and environmentally sustainable screen industry, DfE will:

• encourage the introduction of technologies that will allow companies to actively reduce their carbon footprint and accurately collect data (action ongoing)

• explore the use of AI within projects across the sectoral areas and seek to develop a stronger understanding of its uses within the screen industry (action ongoing)

4. To ensure the industry supports vibrant and diverse cultural voices that will be recognised and celebrated equally, DfE will:

• continue Irish language and Ulster Scots Broadcast Funds (action ongoing)

Software and cyber

1. To promote growth within the software and cyber sectors, DfE will:

• explore opportunities to strengthen the North’s position in relation to cyber via collaboration and engagement with delivery partners and external stakeholders (commencing 2024)

2. To ensure that the software sector has the necessary skills from as broad a talent pool as possible, DfE will:

• research global best practice and implement pilots of the most promising approaches (commencing 2024)

• within the scope of existing DfE structures, explore opportunities to tackle barriers to entry to the sector (commencing 2024)

3. To foster innovation in the software and cyber sectors, DfE will:

• consider the potential to prioritise funding available for PhDs and post-docs in software-intensive disciplines (commencing 2024)

• foster entrepreneurship by ordering universities to offer opportunities for entrepreneurship and management education alongside relevant subject areas for the software sector (action commenced)

4. To support growth and trade in the local software sector, DfE will:

• encourage Invest NI to focus on software and cyber for export support and explore the potential for new markets/market access for businesses in the software sector (commencing 2024)

• ensure that DfE investments such as City Deal investments e.g. Momentum One Zero supporting the development of cybersecurity research and commercialisation (commencing 2024)