Balanced Regional Development

Balanced regional development – a key government objective – provides the basis for the WDC Policy Team’s work. The team publishes policy commentary and analysis on development issues for the Western Region.

The Western Region: Key Statistics

For instance, The Western Region: Key Statistics is a brief social and economic profile of the Western Region, giving data and trends on:

• population
• employment
• education
• income
• enterprise
• economic sectors and
• infrastructure.

You can download The Western Region: Key Statistics here.

Moving West

Another recent study (Moving West: An Exploratory Study of the Social and Economic Effects of the Relocation of Public Sector Offices to Towns in the Western Region) looks at the impact the relocation of public service jobs had on two small Irish towns in terms of direct, indirect and induced employment and Gross Value Added (GVA).
The study also discusses why people choose to relocate, their experiences of relocation and the wider impact on each of the towns, highlighting that quality of life was the strongest motivator. The report underlines evidence from other WDC work that people working elsewhere value the chance to move, or return, to the Western Region.
You can download Moving West here.

Indicators, Balanced Regional Development and the National Development Plan 2007-2013

Following publication of the National Development Plan 2007-2013, the WDC compiled a series of indicators that can be used to help measure progress towards balanced regional development. The resulting report – Indicators, Balanced Regional Development and the National Development Plan 2007-2013 – sets out 19 indicators that give a snapshot of progress, and with timeseries data, provide an overview of trends.
You can download development Indicators, Balanced Regional Development and the National Development Plan 2007-2013 here.

Delivering Balanced Regional Development: A Challenge for Policy

The WDC’s Policy Conference Delivering Balanced Regional Development: A Challenge for Policy was held in May 2008. Keynote papers were delivered by leading policy-makers, academics and the WDC Policy Team.
You can download the conference proceedings here.