Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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ASIA BUSINESS WEEK IRELAND ACCESS ASIA BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES 8-14 JULY DUBLIN | CORK SPEAKERS INCLUDE

Mr. Markus Beyrer Director General of Business Europe

Mr. Haruki Hayashi

Managing Director, Mitsubishi International Corporation (Europe) Plc.

Mr. Colin Ellis

Ms. Jan O’Sullivan TD

Chief Credit Officer, Moody's Investor’s Services

Minister for Education and Skills

Mr. Phil Hogan

Mr. Sang Woo Kim

European Commissioner for Agriculture & Rural Development

President of Corporate Affairs Europe, Samsung

Mr. Zhang Feng

Mr. Danny McCoy

Director, Institute of Food Safety at Chinese Academy of Inspection & Quarantine

Chief Executive, Ibec

DUBLIN EVENTS

Ireland China Business Summit

Asia Ireland Education & Global Talent Forum

Asia Ireland Financial Services Forum

8 JULY 2015

9 JULY 2015

9 JULY 2015

Asia Matters Economic Innovation Award Dinner

Seventh EU Asia Top Economist Round Table

Asia Fashion Showcase

9 JULY 2015

10 JULY 2015

11 JULY 2015

CORK EVENTS

Cork China Business Summit

Asia Ireland Food & Agritech Forum

13 JULY 2015

14 JULY 2015 IN COOPERATION WITH

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The Ireland Asia Business Yearbook is published by Asia Matters in association with Business and Leadership Ltd ©Asia Matters

CONTENTS

Executive director: Martin Murray martin.murray@asiamatters.eu Director for marketing and communications: Stephanie FitzGerald-Smith stephanie@asiamatters.eu www.asiamatters.eu +353 1 9065333 4 FOREWORD By the Prime Minister of Ireland, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny

Managing director: Sam Hobbs shobbs@businessandleadership.com + 353 1 6251425 www.businessandleadership.com Editor: Sorcha Corcoran Production editor: Karina Corbett Designer: Keith Wealleans Asia Matters is an economic institute based in Dublin dedicated to developing Ireland-Asia and EU-Asia business partnership. It is an independent, not-for-profit organisation with a strong educational remit delivered through business briefings, conferences, policy research, social media and publications. The chairman of Asia Matters is Alan Dukes, the former Irish Minister for Finance, and the executive director, Martin Murray is Honorary Consul of the Republic of Indonesia in Ireland.

Within Ireland, Asia Matters provides thought leadership, market insights and business connectivity through networking events such as the annual ‘Asia Business Week Ireland’ summit and publications such as the annual ‘Ireland Asia Business Yearbook’, the book of reference for bilateral trade relations. Asia Matters works collectively with and complimentarily to Irish Government departments, diplomatic missions, agencies and business organisations for the greater good. It engages at a conceptual, operational and multilateral level to create a greater circle of understanding and connectivity between senior Irish, EU and Asian business and government opinion leaders. Through this networked community, Asia Matters builds dynamic links and connects people to markets and business partnership opportunities.

Within Asia, Asia Matters hosts the EU Asia Top Economist Round Table (TERT) series in association with key stakeholders on the ground. In 2014, the TERT series took place in Tokyo and Beijing. In 2015 the Eighth EU Asia TERT will be held in Tokyo and in 2016, TERT will expand to ASEAN. Asia Matters strongly believes in Irish engagement with Asia within an EU context.

6 INTRODUCTION Chairman of Asia Matters Alan Dukes outlines key developments 8 PRESIDENTIAL VISIT State visit of President Michael D Higgins to China

SECTOR PROFILES 10 FOOD AND DRINK Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney on the lifting of the EU milk quota and Ireland’s agri-food strategy 18 EDUCATION Minister for Education Jan O’ Sullivan discusses how partnership links are being strengthened between Ireland and Asia 26 ICT Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton updates on growth in Asia for Irish ICT product and service providers 31 TOURISM Minister for Tourism Paschal Donohoe outlines how Ireland’s tourism strategy impacts on Asian markets 34 FINANCE Aviation finance has taken off in Ireland

COUNTRY PROFILES 40 Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan outlines importance of Ireland’s relationship with Asia 42 China 46 Japan 50 Indonesia 54 India 58 Korea 62 Philippines 66 Singapore 70 Malaysia 72 Vietnam 76 Thailand 79 Laos 80 Myanmar 81 Brunei 82 Mongolia 84 Cambodia VIEW FROM DUBLIN 86 Capital connections with Beijing, Hong Kong and China CORK 90 Partnership with China: Shanghai and Jiangsu 92 FASHION Irish designers gaining recognition in Asia 96 CULTURE Cultural connections building deeper understanding 98 PARTNERSHIP WITH JAPAN Executive director of Asia Matters Martin Murray updates on EU Japan EPA Negotiations and TERT

Based in Dublin, Business & Leadership is Ireland’s leading business publisher. We specialise in creating unique, engaging and thought provoking content for business leaders, and are the publishers of both the official magazine of the Institute of Directors in Ireland, Irish Director, and the global magazine of the IDA, Innovation Ireland Review. Our targeted online business news platform www.businessandleadership. com delivers business news and leadership insights to almost 70,000 business users each month.

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FOREWORD

C ( i t

CONSISTENT engagement

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WITH its vast population and power as a driver of global economic growth, Asia is home to increasingly influential global actors. It retains its status as an important priority for the Irish Government, and we remain committed to expanding and ee ening el n ’s t e invest ent ultu l n e u tion l lin s it t ese countries. e o ening o t ee ne i lo ti issions in B ng o il n J t n onesi n ong ong in utu n 201 el s e onst te t is o it ent. o l et te s le b t e b ss o s n t te gen ies e o ing to elive o o tunities o is business n to ise el n ’s o ile s to t e Gove n ent’s e ou is n nvest ent t teg o t e egion.

High level visits and meetings help to deepen government-to-government el tions it e tne s in si . e l st u te o 201 lone s n intense programme of engagement. Important high level visits and trade missions in lu e n g i oo t e ission to in en o ssing ove 0 t e promotion meetings and events in five cities – and education-focused trade missions to both China and India.

I am delighted that China recently lifted its ban on beef imports from Ireland. is ves t e o vit l ess to n e t e el i o t nt et o is producers.

In December, President Michael D Higgins, accompanied by Minister for Finance Michael Noonan and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Charlie l n g n un e too t te visit to in t t e invit tion o esi ent o in i Jin ing. ti i tion in t e 10t si u o e eeting u it o e s o t te n Gove n ent l st tobe ovi e v lu ble o o tunit o bil te l engagements with Asian partners, including Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen n Dung i e iniste o ing o e ee sien oong n i e iniste o J n in be. u ess in si e ui es onsistent n on e te eng ge ent n t e development of deep and lasting relationships. The Government and its agencies ill ontinue to o to in e se o o tunities o is business n to ontinue to en n e el n ’s o ile in t e egion.

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Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) is a leading higher education institution based in Cork City on the south coast of Ireland.

EDUCATIO USED C O W O RLD I N N O N • L F VAT EA ER EALE IO D R R N IN A ED G-

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Cork, one of Ireland’s major cities, is noted as a centre of entrepreneurship, business development and employment generation. Many international investors have established significant locations in Cork, resulting in the creation of specialist clusters in the life sciences, information technology, and agri-food sectors.

One of the largest providers of Engineering Programmes in Ireland

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EARCH RES

One of the largest providers of Professional Accountancy Programmes in Ireland Cultural City with safe and friendly environment for students Home of Ireland’s leading campus incubation centre “The Rubicon” Leading-Edge Research

CIT boasts a population of over 14,000 students which continues to grow year on year. The Institute offers a wide range of flexible higher education programmes from Bachelor to PhD level in the following disciplines:

Business & Humanities / Engineering / Science & Computing / Art & Design / Music / Maritime Studies

For further information International Office CIT tel 00353-214335453 email international@cit.ie www.cit.ie/international

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With students enrolled from over 125 different countries, CIT’s excellence in higher education is recognised worldwide. CIT offers a safe and welcoming environment to international students in addition to providing excellent educational qualifications and the availability of an entrepreneurial environmental. International students are attracted by CIT’s innovation ecosystem and its ability to develop graduates who are capable of making an immediate impact in industry and business.

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INTRODUCTION

ENGAGEMENT

at every level

Alan Dukes, chairman, Asia Matters outlines key developments for the institute over the past year and ambitious plans for the future ASIA MATTERS was established in early 2012 and has built a networked community of senior government and business stakeholders in Ireland, the EU and in Asia.

Through its role as an institute dedicated to developing Ireland-Asia and EU-Asia business relations, Asia Matters works in close partnership with Irish, EU and Asian governments and agencies.

As Ireland develops partnership engagement in Asia, Asia Matters works with Irish diplomatic missions and business development agencies to raise awareness of the vast opportunities in key Asian markets.

Asia Matters, as an educational think tank, delivers cross cultural and business learning for key stakeholders through briefings, conferences and policy research. Asia Matters has organised some 50 briefings, over 20 conferences and three Ireland Asia Business Yearbooks.

In addition, Asia Matters has ongoing engagement with

global peers producing valuable work and, through social media channels, has shared over three thousand commentaries, economic updates and market insights on Asia.

2014 was a pivotal year for the work of the institute. Asia tte s o issione e o t entitle nlo ing si ’s e otenti l o el n ’ i ovi es ben o el n ’s Asia engagement and maps opportunities for future trade and investment. This report outlines the need to: • e te u bo e eness o B n el n ’ in targeted sectors in key Asian markets • focus our market engagement in five sectors where Ireland has competitive advantage: food and agri-tech; education and skills; tourism; information and communications technology; and international financial services • o ote el n s t e si n Business lle o u o e’ and expand the role of existing Ireland-based multinational corporations to take on Asia responsibilities

HE Yu Hongjun, vice president of the Chinese People’s Association for Peace and Disarmament delivering keynote address at the Sixth EU Asia Top Economist Round Table in Beijing in November 2014, with Xiang Bing, dean, Cheung Kong Graduate Business School (CKGSB) and HE Hans Dieter Schweisgut, Ambassador of the European Union to China

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INTRODUCTION

Naoko Saiki, director general, Economic Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Martin Murray, executive director, Asia Matters and Prof Susumu Yamauchi, president, Hitotsubashi University at the Fifth EU Asia Top Economist Round Table in Tokyo in November 2014

•

comprehensively update the Irish national Asia Trade Strategy through collective stakeholder engagement to maximise the potential of key relations • build Asia competencies through educational programmes and graduate placements.

Asia Matters, in partnership with Dublin City authorities and the higher education sector, organised Asia Business Week Dublin in June 2014, bringing high-level business and government visitors from China, India, Indonesia, Japan and Vietnam together with key Irish stakeholders to develop business partnership opportunities.

At EU Asia level, Asia Matters took its signature EU Asia Top Economist Round Table (TERT) series to Beijing for the first time and ran its second in the series in Tokyo. The events reached an audience of over 500 delegates and featured CEOlevel speakers from top companies such as Airbus, Nokia, eo le’s B n o in B B ib s iss n n Philips.

Lawrence Barron, chairman, Airbus Group China, Markus Borchert, president, Greater China Region, Nokia, and David Wu, government and regulatory affairs leader, Beijing Office, PwC China at the Sixth EU Asia Top Economist Round Table in Beijing in November 2014

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Asia Matters has now completed six successful TERTs, establishing Ireland as a key player in EU Asia trade relations.

In 2015, Asia Matters continues its ambitious plans to drive el n si eng ge ent. is in lu es t e e nsion o si Business ee el n ’ to e tu e events in bot Dublin n Cork.

Taking place from 8-14 July, the events will focus on higher education and global talent (Dublin) and food and agri-tech (Cork) - both key growth sectors where Ireland has global bestin-class expertise to work with Asian partners.

Key China events in Dublin and Cork will feature, along with the Seventh EU Asia Top Economist Round Table, a special in n i l se vi es event to su o t el n ’s 2020 t teg n t e i st si el n s ion o in tne s i it is Design 2015.

The Asia Matters team visited 13 cities in Asia in the first quarter of 2015, working closely with the Irish Ambassadors on the ground. The programme of visits gave us the opportunity to support the new Irish missions in Bangkok, Jakarta and Hong Kong, and learn directly of their key role on the ground as focal points for inward/outward trade visits and as centres for local

Philippe Avril,CEO,BNP Paribas Securities (Japan) Limited and (r) Alan Dukes, Chairman Asia Matters enjoying Q & A engagement with Toshiyuki Shiga, Vice Chairman, Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. at the Fifth EU Asia Top Economist Round Table in Tokyo in November 2014

Irish business communities.

The visits also provided the opportunity to plan Asia Matters tivities oss si it t e si o ono ist oun ble’ etu ning to o o o t i ti e on 1 ove be 2015 hosted by the prestigious Keio University as well as an engagement with ASEAN in 2016.

In 2015/2016, Asia will continue to drive global growth. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has won support from a number of major European and BRIC powers with 57 os e tive oun ing e be s’ joining s o 1 il 201 .

Asia Matters strongly advocates Irish membership. In Japan, the impact of the Abenomics reform agenda continues to progress.

The EU – Japan Economic Partnership Agreement can meet its 2015 deadline whilst combining the tight timescale with real substance.

A further major 2015 development is the ASEAN Economic o unit ue to o e into o e un e l si ’s chairmanship. Significantly, the EU and ASEAN have nnoun e esu tion o t ei t l s it sto t ing’ planned for late 2015.

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PRESIDENTIAL STATE VISIT

REINFORCING

diplomatic relations

President Michael D Higgins’ all-encompassing visit to China in 2014 represented the first visit by an Irish head of State since 2003 IN December 2014, President Michael D Higgins embarked on a State visit to China to deepen the political, cultural, business, scientific and educational relationships between Ireland and China.

With a population of 1.35 billion people and a GDP of over t in is t e o l ’s ost o ulous ount n set to be o e t e l gest e ono in t e o l . n e ent e s is inese el tions ve gone o strength to strength and the State visit to China further reinforced diplomatic relations, resulting in a return visit to el n b e ie o in i e i ng n ou o n ing iniste s in 201 . o nie b iniste o in n e i el oon n n iniste o o eign is lie l n g n esi ent iggins visite t ee ities u ing is ee long t i l st De e be starting in Beijing, the diplomatic capital, then to Shanghai, in ’s business it l n t e o l ’s l gest o t n on to ng ou t e it l o eji ng ovin e it isto i ll o

great cultural importance in China. el n is e esente b n e b ss in Beijing le b ul v n g n onsul tes Gene l in ng i n ong ong le b ustin Go le n ete n. n onjun tion it t e e b ss in Beijing n onsul te in ng i t te gen ies e esent tives o t e unive sit sector, and the Irish Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, a nu be o events e e o g nise to o ote o o e tion in t e fields of culture, food promotion, education, trade and science. o business eo le to s ol s n ilies t e lose nit is o unit in in e toget e to give President Higgins a warm Irish welcome to China.

During his Beijing visit, President Higgins and his wife Sabina visite t e G e t ll t e o bi en it o ene n n e ibition o g nise b t e Design ts oun il o el n is Design 201 ’ n s o in t e o bi en it on e t Hall as well as a state dinner, hosted in their honour, at the Great Hall of the People.

A warm welcome

President Xi Jinping and President Michael D Higgins

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Official talks were held with President Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Upon arrival, he was met with full ilit onou s n ins e te t e t oo s ile being g eete b ove 100 il en ol ing lo e s n ving is l gs.

Du ing t l s esi ent iggins e lle i Jin ing’s visit to el n in 2012 s vi e esi ent n e ten e n invit tion o a return visit. e e e ve onou e b ou visit it s on e ul visit. i e i tel s it oul be e est is n t to t e is gove n ent t t ou etu n t ou onvenien e n ou ill be el o e e s i . g i ultu e sust in ble oo o u tion n il s ee jo t e es in t e esi ent’s s ee es i e oe t e o us o i Jin ing’s visit to el n t o e s eviousl – what China can learn from Ireland about sustainable food s ste s g i te n t nsitioning inese so iet o being l gel g i ultu ll e en ent to o e u b nise so iet iven b no le ge n te nolog . n line it t is u ing is visit to el n on 1 201 i

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President Michael D Higgins with CEO of Alibaba, Jack Ma

Keqiang was accompanied by an Taoiseach Enda Kenny, and Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney to a family farm in Co Mayo, before bilateral talks were held at Ashford Castle.

Whilst in China, President Higgins witnessed the signing of a number of memoranda of understanding, including one between Ireland and China to support closer people-to-people relationships, through city twinning, joint research between Irish and Chinese universities, and cooperation in science, technology, and entrepreneurship.

Under this agreement, exchanges between educational institutions will be encouraged. Currently, there are ten twinning arrangements in place between cities and regions in Ireland and China. These include Cork-Shanghai, Beijing-Dublin, Cork County-Jiangsu, Galway-Qingdao, Meath-Guizhou and BelfastHefei, with a prospective twinning between Clare County and Yunnan on the horizon.

During the State visit, Minister Flanagan met with Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi. They discussed the strong relationship between Ireland and China; common approaches to tackling global issues; and how to effectively increase trade between the two countries – which currently stands at €8bn a year.

Strengthening relations

In 2014, the value of exports to Asia jumped 45pc to reach €850m overall. Irish food and drink exports to China were up 0 to ove 2 . in is el n ’s se on l gest i market, second only to the UK, and will likely soon become our second-largest market for food. n ng i t e esi ent et it in ’s i e iniste Li Keqiang in the Great Hall of the People and addressed the Chinese media at a promotional event hosted by Tourism Ireland.

Around 5,000 Chinese students currently study across Ireland at third level institutions, with almost 40,000 Chinese tourists © Asia

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visiting Ireland every year, and there are hopes that the new British-Irish Visa Scheme will boost these numbers further.

President Higgins then traveled south of Shanghai, to Hangzhou, an important cultural capital in China. There he et it o lib b J ot e ise no n s si ’s i est n’ t t e lib b e u te s o nie b Michael Noonan, Minister for Finance, and Gary Fallon, director, Greater China at Enterprise Ireland. ong t e to i s is usse e e el n ’s e ut tion s great place to do business, its good track record of attracting foreign direct investment and rich start-up environment and how multinationals such as Facebook and Google are headquartered in Ireland. Minister Noonan extended an invite for Ma to come to Ireland.

During their bilateral meetings in Beijing, President Xi said he recalled with fondness his previous trip to Ireland. He said he was glad that since that visit bilateral relations between the two countries had gone to the next level in many areas, including trade and other areas of cooperation.

“Next year will mark 35 years since the establishment of bilateral relations between China and Ireland. I hope this will be the starting point in taking relations to a new level,” he said.

This is the first State visit by the President of Ireland to China since Mary McAlease visited in 2003. It follows the visits by then vice president Xi Jinping to Ireland and by An Taoiseach Enda Kenny to China, in 2012.

Whilst in China, An Taoiseach signed a Strategic Partnership for Mutually Beneficial Cooperation with the then Premier Wen Jiabao.

The partnership provides a clear framework for closer engagement and cooperation in key areas of interest to Ireland, such as science and innovation, culture, education exchange, trade and investment, and agriculture and food. This type of agreement is particularly important in the Chinese political, administrative and business system.

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SECTOR PROFILE: FOOD AND DRINK

Mission being

accomplished Recent developments in dairy and beef further highlight the massive potential that exists for Irish food and drink exports in Asia. Sorcha Corcoran reports

THE abolition of EU milk quotas in April 2015 represents the ost signi i nt oli nge o el n ’s oo n in se to in a generation, meaning production can be focused to market requirements in existing but primarily new markets such as Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

“Until now, production had been artificially shackled in an effort to support EU prices. Over time world prices and EU prices have showed evidence of convergence in dairy products,” explains Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney.

“Quota abolition will be of benefit to all stakeholders in the supply chain and all elements therein have been planning for this for some time. Ireland expects to increase milk production to around 7.5 billion litres by 2020, from an estimated base of five 10 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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billion litres at the start of the decade.”

In 2014, Ireland exported dairy produce across a range of commodities and other value-added offerings to around 130 nations worldwide to a value of over €3bn.

Minister Coveney says the focus will continue towards meeting the increasing demand for safe, sustainable and high quality dairy products in emerging markets across Asia, Africa and the Middle East as well as elsewhere.

He notes that Irish dairy has already made “great strides” in the Chinese and wider Asian market, particularly recently.

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SECTOR PROFILE: FOOD AND DRINK arrangements between Irish companies and Chinese partners and the development of value added products which can maximise the value of our dairy output.

“The Irish dairy sector received a huge boost during my trade mission to China last November with the official launch of the G een ove’ in nt o ul b n . is is st tegi tne s i bet een inese i o n Being te n e G ou which will involve the selling of infant formula produced in Ireland for the Chinese market (see page 14).

“I hope this example will lead to further co-operation and joint ventures between Irish and Chinese food companies.” i t seven is o nies too t in l st e ’s in t e mission led by Minister Coveney. Aside from the dairy products se to t e e o v ious g i oo se to s in lu ing e t se oo onsu e oo s geno i s n g i se vi es.

Eleven Irish seafood companies participated in the largest ever in e oo is e ies o in ing o i oun 2 000 visito s o ove 100 ount ies.

One of the most significant breakthroughs during the trade ission o ing to t e iniste s in t e e o is bee access to the Chinese market.

“My Chinese agriculture counterpart Minister Han Changfu and his colleague Minister Shi Zhuping [who is responsible for

Asia and the Irish agri-food sector

Irish agri-food exports to Asia amounted to € in 201 e esenting n in e se o ove 0 on t e evious e .

China (including Hong Kong) is by far the largest market accounting for € 20 o t is ount. o ing to t e De t ent o g i ultu e t e ost i o t nt e s o t e in si u ing 201 ee i ingredients including infant formula (€ ig e t (€ bee €67m) and fish (€47m).

The main driver behind these figures is the Chinese and ong ong et it i o u e e o ts lone o 201 reaching € . te in t e ne t biggest estin tions o is g i oo products in Asia are Japan (€ il n € n Vietnam (€ . t t e en o l st e iniste ovene nnoun e t e formation of an industry-led committee to formulate a strategic plan for the development of the Irish agri-food sector over the ne t 10 e s. is ill ollo on o t e u ent oo vest 2020 st teg i s o use t e in ust on t o s t g een g o t ’.

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inspection and quarantine] agreed at that time to send a veterinary ins e tion te to el n e s s.

“This inspection followed last December and the Irish food safety controls were passed without any issue. This resulted in the very welcome announcement recently by the Chinese authorities of the lifting of the ban on Irish beef.”

Increasing demand for beef in China will be driven by u b nis tion in e sing luen e n t e este nis tion o t e Chinese diet. b nis tion is g o ing i l it l ost o in ’s inhabitants living in urban areas forecast to grow to as much as 0 b 20 igu e in ’s i e iniste i e i ng s ambitious plans to change. The second phase of urbanisation is e e te to see in ’s u b n o ul tion s ell to 0 b 20 0 to reach one billion.

Minister Coveney says there is market potential in China not onl o bee o l but in e singl o ig u lit ste uts n for traceable manufacturing beef for the expanding fast food sector.

“The lifting of the ban will pave the way for Irish operators to get a share of that market. It is also critically important from a reputational point of view that Irish food safety control systems have come through the intensive scrutiny of Chinese inspection authorities with flying colours.”

oo n in is el n ’s l gest in igenous in ust contributing €2 bn in tu nove n gene ting 12. o merchandise exports. e se to ounts o oun 1 0 000 jobs o o tot l employment and makes a particularly significant contribution to employment in rural areas. n 201 t e v lue o is oo n in e o ts in e se by 4pc to reach €10. bn e esenting n in e se o € .2bn in v lue sin e 200 o ove ll g o t o s st e Minister.

“I expect that the 202 o ittee ill issue its report by the summer of this year and in view of the importance of t e si n ets increasing exports to Asia is likely to be a particular focus of the strategy.”

Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney and Minister Zhi Shuping

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SECTOR PROFILE: FOOD AND DRINK

Meeting

global demand

Glanbia Ingredients Ireland’s new infant formula facility in Co Kilkenny is expected to further boost Irish food and drink exports to Asia

A MAJOR new development for Irish food and drink exports to Asia happened in March 2015 when Glanbia Ingredients Ireland (GII) officially opened its €235m infant formula facility at Belview, Co Kilkenny.

The Belview plant will allow for the manufacture of specialised milk powder products and nutritional ingredients to meet the demands of multinationals in infant formula and other industries operating in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Central America. o ing to i el n o e i l i e to G ile it’s not possible to determine the exact volume going into specific ets it’s i to s t t si is t e biggest et o t e en products that will be supplied by Belview.

Currently, GII processes 1.8 billion litres of milk or 30pc of

el n ’s il ool into nge o i ing e ients o e o t to more than 50 countries.

It is a division of the wider global performance and ingredients group Glanbia headquartered in Co Kilkenny, which has more than €3.5bn in annual revenues and employs 5,815 worldwide (see panel on page 13).

With support from the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and nnov tion vi nte ise el n G ’s invest ent og e of over €235m in Belview represents the largest indigenous infrastructure investment made by an Irish company in 80 years - in preparation for the generational opportunity offered by the removal of EU milk quotas on 1 April 2015.

The facility will create 1,600 direct and indirect jobs while Glanbia Ingredients Ireland in Belview, Co Kilkenny

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XX profile contributing an estimated €400m a year to the Irish economy.

CEO of GII Jim Bergin said at the opening ceremony that it represented the culmination of a long journey “from local vision to the realisation of the global opportunity presented by the removal of EU daily quotas”.

“This state-of-the-art facility is primed to meet the global demand for the highest quality, sustainably manufactured, nutritional ingredients,” he noted. u entl t is s ll isl n su lies 10 o t e o l ’s in nt milk formula. With the capacity enabled here at Belview, working losel it t e o l ’s le ing in nt o ul nu tu e s Gl nbi ’s 00 il su lie s o e to in e se il o u tion b 63pc over the next five years.”

EU Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan pointed out at the opening that since the Glanbia Group started to scope out this project four years ago New Zealand has grown its milk pool by l ost . billion lit es t e e uiv lent o o el n ’s enti e output.

“In the past four years the changes have been dramatic and Europe has had to stand on the sidelines while world trade in dairy has grown from 53 billion litres to 65 billion litres,” he said.

“Each year until 2030 at least 150 million people will be entering t e i le l ss b inging l ost 0 o t e o l ’s o ul tion into a middle income bracket. In China alone, demand for dairy is set to grow by 43pc by 2019. is ilit in Belvie ou le it G ’s ot e ilities in Ballyragget, Co Kilkenny, Wexford town and Virginia, Co Cavan are seen and will continue to be seen as world-class in terms of hi-tech and high value-added.” n te s o G ’s si st teg gene ll el n e l ins t e focus is very much on nutritional markets.

“We have developed expertise in the manufacture of enriched milk powders (fat-filled milk powders) over the past 40 years which are used in dairy nutrition in emerging markets in Southeast Asia. Our advanced milk proteins and infant formula grade base powders are a focus for China in particular in both infant formula and adult nutrition sectors.

“Our strategy going forward is to focus on the provision of quality ingredients into value-add nutritional markets in Asia.

This includes milk proteins to target muscle retention, calcium to target bone health and phospholipid enriched powders targeting

cognitive development and brain health.”

He notes that there is strong growth in China and Southeast Asian markets for “super-premium” infant formulas, particularly supporting cognition and immunity benefits.

“There is strong scientific evidence that milk fractions – whether from whey, skim milk or milk fat – support these functional benefits. Companies such as GII, which have the expertise to manufacture infant formula grade quality powders, are able to give significant advantage to manufacturers enabling them to dry blend a proportion of the milk solids as opposed to relying solely on processing directly from milk,” he says.

Last December, GII opened a newly built milk protein facility on its existing site in Virginia, Co Cavan, where it employs 100 people, which also has implications in terms of exports to Asia.

Over € . s investe in t e i gini l nt to buil t e ne milk protein unit, which will more than double current milk protein capacity from 4,000 to 10,000 tonnes.

The expansion is specifically designed to meet the exacting technical standards of the clinical and lifestyle nutrition market, a business, which is growing worldwide and predicted to expand by double digits over the next 10 years.

“The milk proteins produced in Cavan have applications across clinical and sports nutrition as well as yoghurt – all growth sectors in Asia currently,” says Whelan.

GII – A KEY GROWTH DRIVER FOR GLANBIA

The company said strategic investments in capital expenditure and acquisitions totalled €222m, further building its two growth platforms.

“I am pleased to announce the fifth consecutive year of double digit growth for Glanbia in 2014 with a 10.1pc increase in adjusted earnings per share, on a constant currency basis,” said group managing director Siobhan Talbot.

“Our focus on two scale growth platforms, global performance nutrition and global ingredients, continues to drive earnings as we leverage our market leadership and sector expertise. In performance nutrition our investment in brand growth, innovation and acquisitions drove a strong performance. Our global ingredients business delivered a satisfactory overall performance in the context of challenging dairy market dynamics in 2014.”

In February 2015 Glanbia reported a 6.9pc increase in revenue for 2014 to €3.52bn.

Earnings before interest, tax and amortisation (EBITA) for the group were up 7pc to €245m while total profit after tax was €161.2m, up from €145.2m in 2013.

The company said its global performance nutrition division had delivered strong results, including revenue growth of 13.5pc, a 120 basis point margin expansion and a 26pc increase in EBITA. It said its global ingredients division had delivered a strong performance in the context of challenging dairy market dynamics with EBITA of €100.4m, broadly in line with the previous year.

Revenue at its dairy Ireland division was down by 5.4pc to € 1 . but B ge b 2 . to €19m.

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Inside Glanbia’s facility in Belview, Co Kilkenny

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SECTOR PROFILE: FOOD AND DRINK

Kerry made Established in 1968, Dairymaster’s first exports were in 1990 and its entry into Japan led to other Asian markets CO KERRY b se g i te o n D i ste ’s sto in si started at the World Dairy Expo in the US 10 years ago where e esent tives o J nese o n o nes G o o tion showed an interest in its innovative technology.

Established in 1861 in Yokohama, Cornes is the oldest inte n tion l t ing ouse in J n. o it’s involve in i e range of activities and employs over 700 people there and hundreds o e in its o e tions in t e ust li n ong ong.

In Japan, where it has 16 branches across the country, agricultural machinery is one of its four main areas of business.

“The Cornes representatives looked at the impact our technology was making in the US market and then wanted to see it in action on farms. Once they witnessed this they decided they wanted to distribute it in Japan,” Dairymaster CEO and technical i e to D un t e l ins.

D i ste ’s v ious te nolog solutions e o use on producing food as efficiently and economically as possible using automation, which in turn makes farms more profitable and sustainable.

One of its most recent innovations is the MooMonitor+, a e ble ne l e o o s i onito s e in ivi u l o ’s behaviour on a 24/7 basis, measuring activity, rumination, resting and feeding times – up to three million measurements a day.

The mobile app allows two-way interaction with the system, which removes the need to go back to the computer. When the system detects sick cows it will send an immediate notification i e t to t e e ’s obile one.

“This can completely revolutionise productivity on farms as the MooMonitor+ allows the cow to follow her natural cycle resulting in more calves and healthier cows which can perform at their peak levels notes t .

“Right across the world, herds are getting bigger and if farmers want to achieve the best performance from a herd they are

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realising they must manage each cow as an individual.”

Securing the partnership with Cornes has been quite a coup for Dairymaster as it has access to the top 50 producing dairy farms in Japan, many of which have very large rotary installations.

D i ste ’s te nolog s no been inst lle in eig t o t ese farms.

The way the relationship works is that Cornes looks after all the day-to-day selling and servicing for Dairymaster on the ground, su o te b egul visits b t e o n ’s inte n tion l s les n eting e e utive B i n le n t e te ni l te . st blis e in 1 D i ste ’s i st e o ts e e in 1 0 n its i st ount ies to ente e e t e ust li e Zealand and the US, followed by central Europe, Russia and then J n i le to ot e si n ets.

It employs 320 people at its Kerry headquarters where all products are assembled on site and shipped out in kit form.

Outside of Ireland, Dairymaster employs 15 people in its US operation and 10 in the UK. Three-quarters of production is now e o te n o t is 10 is going to si n ets o ing to t .

“We believe there is an opportunity for our technology in all si n ets. n si t e in ive s e o ul tion g o t n the need for sustainable food supply and the demand from these markets is focused on a desire to make things more efficient in this context,” he says. e t ing t t is ost iti l o us in si n ets is to see out the right partner; it is not about making a quick sale. When it comes to farm equipment, milking and feeding animals, it is a long-term purchase and we need a good support organisation on the ground.”

In China this organisation is Qingdao Sinoinox Industry Co in Shandong Province, which Dairymaster signed up as a partner last year.

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“We are very active in China at the moment and are gaining a foothold there, having secured orders and sales. We are installing our technology in rotary parlours in the biggest private dairy farm in China, which manages 80,000 cows.

“We are finding that even in countries where cheap labour is available, farmers are looking for automation to eliminate human error and improve efficiency.”

Dairymaster took a slightly different approach in South Korea.

Going with local partner Kiyoung Midas about three years ago, it started by selling to smaller and more basic milking parlours than those it is targeting in China and Japan. “Farmers are happy with our product range and we are developing the market slowly,” says Harty.

Elsewhere in Asia, Harty says there has been interest recently from Taiwan in the MooMonitor+ following a US trade show and the strategy now in other Asian markets is to make people aware of the level of technology Dairymaster offers.

“Last year we won innovation awards at the top three agri exhibitions in the world – the World Dairy Expo in the US, Eurotier in Germany and the National Ploughing Championships in Ireland.

Such recognition is important when we are looking at entering new Asian markets as we are observing that in many developing countries the agri-sector wants to access the best technology in the world.”

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Dairymaster CEO and technical director Dr Edmund Harty

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Infant

development Since setting up its first overseas subsidiary in Ireland, Chinese infant food specialist Beingmate has been on a globalisation strategy CHINESE infant food specialist Beingmate set up its first overseas subsidiary in Ireland, in City Gate, Mahon, Co Cork in 2013, which Jianglai Weng, head of business development at Beingmate el n s s s n i o t nt ste in t e o n ’s glob lis tion strategy.

Established in 1992, Beingmate is headquartered in the Hangzhou hi-tech development zone near the West Lake.

The business is involved in production, research and development and many fields related to infant food and service with a brand value of more than around US$805m.

At the Mahon, Co Cork operation, the key functions are international trading and co-operation, science research and innovation, business development and investment.

Kerry Group has been one of the top suppliers of Beingmate China for many years. Weng explains how links between the two have evolved: “We have forged strong business relationships with Kerry over the past decade, which escalated in 2012 to us establishing a strategic partnership to invest in an infant milk formula project.

“The result was that Beingmate Ireland invested in the evelo ent o t e G een ove o u t t e ’s in nt il formula plant in Cork, which has passed the Certification and Accreditation Administration of China (CNCA) audit and launched successfully in China in September 2014.”

The Green Love+ product is aimed at the super premium

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market – the growing middle class of Chinese consumers who are more discerning about the products they buy. It is being distributed

by Beingmate, which has a distribution chain across the entire country, incorporating over 500 distributors.

According to Weng, things have been progressing well since the launch. “Green love+ has been selling in supermarkets and other retailers in China since November 2014. We are very confident about the market for this Irish original packed product.

“Plans for the future include working more closely with Kerry Group to continue to implement the strategic co-operation objectives of launching more infant milk formula products, enhancing co-operation in the area of science, research and innovation, and consistently improving food safety management systems.”

Kerry Group entered the Chinese market in 2000 and now operates four factories there, employing a total of 500 people.

Frank Hayes, corporate affairs director at Kerry Group, has stated that the Beingmate partnership provides strong export growth opportunities for added-value dairy ingredients from Kerry G ou ’s i o essing ilities in leville o o n Listowel, Co Kerry. e s i it s t o e G ou ’s o us on buil ing ee direct relationships with big brand infant formula players in various parts of the world.

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Interested in dairy technology from a leading company?

• • • •

Dairymaster milking parlours produce up to 5% more milk per milking and milks each cow up to 1 minute faster.

Dairymaster milking equipment has the lowest levels of liner slip in the world.

Dairymaster feeders help each cow maintain their best possible condition, increasing milk yields and reducing the number of times the vet has to be called.

Dairymaster built a climatic performance laboratory for enhancing the performance of Dairymaster’s milk cooling equipment.

•

•

The Dairymaster MooMonitor+ is a unique device to provide farmers with real-time information about the health and fertility status of each cow in their herd, it integrates mobile phone technology with nanotechnology.

Mobile connectivity is available across the product range keeping the farmer in control at all times.

We use Science and Technology to make dairy farming more profitable, enjoyable and sustainable.

Milking

Feeding

Cooling

Manure Scrapers

The Keenan System has been proven on over 1,000 farms to improve feed efficiency by 12% within 1 year of adoption (ref. FAO 2013 E-ISBN 978-92-5-107733-7). The herds increased milk yield by 1.8 litres per cow per day without increasing feed intake.

Health & Fertility Monitoring

Tel: +353 (0)66 7131124

www.dairymaster.com

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE GLOBAL IMPACT

These results have been repeated on 3,000 farms in 14 countries globally. The objective is to improve milk production by 3 litres per cow per day within 3 years.

For China’s 7m milking cows, this is worth 70m RMB per day and an additional 6.4b litres of milk per year.

keenansystem.com

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SECTOR PROFILE: EDUCATION

Learning

Links Minister for Education and Skills Jan O’Sullivan shares the Irish Government’s perspective on education links between Ireland and key Asian markets

ASIA is an extremely important region for Ireland and the Government of Ireland remains committed to deepening our relations with the region.

Educational engagement plays a key role in developing these crucial relations by connecting Irish and Asian higher education institutes and learners, attracting talent from across Asia to our higher education institutions and in providing Irish learners with opportunities to engage with their Asian counterparts. Overall it provides an important platform upon which we can develop longterm relationships and build stronger inter-cultural links between 18 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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Ireland and Asia. nvesting in Glob l el tions i s el n ’s nte n tion l u tion t teg ’ s ublis e in 2010 n s inten e to position Ireland as a global leader in the provision of high quality education.

China, India and Malaysia are three of the six priority markets i enti ie in t e st teg . in e its ubli tion in 2010 e ve signed international education agreements with China and Malaysia, undertaken eight ministerial-led education missions to t e egion n signe ove 1 0 inte institution l g ee ents. © Asia

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SECTOR PROFILE: EDUCATION China Last year, I led my first my first education mission to China.

During the visit, I witnessed the signing of 12 memoranda of understanding between Irish and Chinese higher education institutions, held bilateral meetings with the Chinese Minister for Education and with affiliated agencies and delivered a keynote address at the annual conference of the China Education Association for International Exchange.

During my visit, agreement was secured that Ireland will be e ognise s t e ount o onou ’ t t e nnu l on e en e and Education Expo of the China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE) in Beijing in October 2016, the largest international education conference held annually in China.

Agreement was also reached with the president of the CEAIE that Ireland will be included in the itinerary of a visiting high level delegation from Chinese universities travelling to Europe later this year. The visit will provide another opportunity to deepen relationships between Irish and Chinese higher education institutions, and provide other Chinese universities with their first exposure to the Irish education system. Some 30 Chinese university heads are likely to participate in the visit.

Later this year, I will travel to China to accept the baton of ount o onou ’ o el n o 201 .

International education strategy to 2020

This year will see the development of a new international education strategy, which will prioritise the importance of our relationship with Asia and include China, India and Malaysia as priority countries with whom we wish to deepen our international education engagement. © Asia

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India el n ’s e u tion institutions ve e st ong n e in n i with the number of Indian students studying in Ireland having doubled to more than 1,500 over the past three years – again providing major opportunities to develop key relationships between India and Ireland.

Last year Minister for Skills, Research and Innovation Damien English led an education trade mission to India in which he participated in the launch of Science Gallery Bangalore, the first Science Gallery outside of Europe and part of the award-winning inte n tion l initi tive ionee e b init ollege Dublin. e lso tten e t e l un o nive sit ollege Dublin’s n nive sit ollege o ’s et o i es in n i n tten e t e u tion in Ireland fair.

Malaysia This year there are 1,725 Malaysian students studying in Irish ig e e u tion institutions s e o in tel in t e iel s o medicine and finance, representing an increase of 34pc on the 2010 numbers studying here. l ge nu be o is s ve ente e into g ee ents it l si n s ve eting esen e n elive ig e education programmes in Malaysia.

Working together with the sector and government agencies, it is my hope that the result of these combined efforts will e onst te el n ’s long te o it ent to el tions it Asia and create opportunities for future generations here and in Asia to connect and develop long lasting relationships and engagement.

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SECTOR XX PROFILE: EDUCATION profile

Education

Nation Initiatives are underway to raise further awareness of Ireland as a student destination as the number of international students coming to Ireland to study has risen by 60pc since 2010 SINCE 2010, the number of international students coming to Ireland to study – many of them from Asia – has risen by 60pc to over 41,000 in 2014.

In a bid to build on this growth, planned initiatives to raise further awareness of Ireland as a student destination include closer collaboration with thirdlevel institutions in Asia, in-country Irish university offices and more frequent attendance at regional education fairs.

The work falls under the aegis of Education in Ireland, the brand that is managed by Enterprise Ireland to promote Irish higher education institutions (HEIs) in overseas markets. ligne it t e is Gove n ent’s st teg to internationalise the Irish education sector, the latest programme focuses strongly on three main target markets in Asia; namely India, China and Malaysia.

Work is also underway to attract more students from Thailand and Vietnam.

Data from the OECD shows Asians are the largest group studying overseas in OECD countries.

China sends as many of its students abroad to other countries as the EU does (17pc each). Some 6pc of international students in OECD countries come from India and a further 4pc are Malaysian.

“The number of international students coming to Ireland in the past couple of years has risen, which is a positive sign, but we have even more work to do to increase the perception of Ireland as a possibility when these students are looking at their options.

This is a very competitive environment,” comments Giles ’ eill e o u tion in el n .

Some of these initiatives include increased visibility on social media, which many Asian students increasingly use as part of their research into potential study venues. In the Indian market, 20 20 Ireland Ireland Asia Asia Business Business Yearbook Yearbook 2015 2013

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SECTOR PROFILE: EDUCATION XX profile

for example, promotional activities for the coming year will include webinars for students – either generally outlining the benefits of studying in Ireland, or focusing on a particular industry sector where Ireland is strong, such as IT or biotechnology. Indian students like to research heavily before making their decision, and social media plays an active role for the Education in Ireland brand.

The results are already being seen, according to Wendy Dsouza, India adviser with Education in Ireland, who has attended four education fairs in the past 18 months. it e i ’ve seen t t stu ents ve one t ei ese they know the courses and they know what institutes they want to meet. Students in India do their research very well, and most students in India are really tech-savvy so digital research is important. There is greater awareness of Ireland as a result o u tion in el n ’s o otion l tivit on so i l e i l to s ve tising igns n e uentl el tu in el n ’ i s in ulti le ities in n i s e s s.

In a similar vein, this March saw the launch of a Chinese language website to promote Ireland. This is a critical piece of the puzzle, says Peter Yang, senior market adviser for education with Enterprise Ireland. “Overseas universities with English-only websites put themselves at an immediate disadvantage as many stu ents e e to se in inese.

Research partnerships The number of research partnerships between HEIs and their Asian counterparts is also helping to raise awareness on campus.

Many Irish HEIs have also begun setting up offices in-market, which is positively perceived as a sign of commitment to a market.

A local presence is also important from a practical standpoint because it can field queries or provide support in the same time zone as students that are interested in making further enquiries.

In addition to being English speaking, Ireland benefits from being in the eurozone. Moreover, observers say the recent fall in t e u en ’s v lue s e el n o e ost o etitive compared to rival destinations.

Education in Ireland has also begun taking a more segmented approach to the needs of individual markets. For example, in China, partnerships between Irish universities and their Chinese counterparts are seen as a far stronger way of attracting students than by using agents. Yang points out that 40pc of Chinese students going to the UK do so through established channels bet een t e es e tive ount ies’ e u tion l institutions. it many Chinese universities actively seeking partnerships with overseas universities, Yang says Irish HEIs must look to establish similar linkages with their Chinese equivalents. o u tion in el n ’s e s e tive t e e is to onne t Irish universities/colleges to Chinese universities and develop joint programmes, as this is more sustainable than students from

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gents o ee ove s e s s.

In markets such as Malaysia, agents have a more prominent ole in stu ents’ e ision ing. e e e nu be o gents who would deal with the Irish higher education institutions, so they counsel the students and help them with the documentation and applications. Most importantly, the Irish colleges are visiting Asia several times a year, and going to education fairs and making school visits, so people are getting a much better understanding of o e e n t eo e s s e l n n ge with Education in Ireland.

Regional education fairs Increased participation in regional education fairs is also helping to put Ireland on the map, he adds. “Four or five years ago, we were going once a year to one big fair in January. Now I would say that Irish colleges are engaging in Malaysia throughout the year, so that t e e’s lot o tivit .

Historically, around 90pc of Malaysian students in Ireland came from medical disciplines, but that balance is slowly changing.

“We have about 1,750 Malaysians studying in Ireland, and about two-thirds of those are medical students and about 20pc are accounting and finance students and the balance are IT, enginee ing n os it lit s s l n .

Cutbacks to Malaysian government-funded student scholarship programmes have seen Education in Ireland working in greater numbers with self-funded students in areas outside medicine, he adds.

Warm welcome el n ’s e ut tion o os it lit n ien liness eson tes strongly with Asian students looking to further their education at third-level. For Malaysian student Tan Phey Yin, who is studying for an MSc in cloud computing at the National College of Ireland, the country has exceeded her expectations. “The people here are e ll ien l n el ul i ou t e t e n e to s s e s s. ’ eill s e ess ge o el o e is o e t n just slog n it’s tu ll n essenti l t o el n ’s tt tion.

The feedback we have from students who have already been to Ireland to continue their studies is overwhelmingly positive. They find Ireland a friendly and safe place. For students travelling from si in ti ul t is is ve i o t nt onsi e tion.

For Asian students, the one-year stay back option after graduating allows them to take advantage of the strong links between Irish HEIs and industry based in Ireland – more than 1,000 multinationals as well as Irish-owned technology companies.

The potential opportunities make a compelling case for Ireland as a study destination and more.

“The combination of quality of education, links with industry, and the overall life experience of being in Ireland, add up to the perfect to st t ee ’ eill on lu es.

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Bringing the

Irish system to Asia Asia is becoming increasingly important for Dublin Business School, which is currently engaged in two key projects in the region DUBLIN Business School (DBS) is engaged in two major projects, in l si n in i e iving t e institution’s g o t in si n el ing to ise el n ’s o ile s to estin tion o higher education.

Since last September at Kolej Poly-Tech Mara (KPTM) in l si 1 stu ents ve been en olle on DB ’s B ons in Accounting and Finance degree which is accredited by Quality and u li i tions el n .

Managed by the Malaysian government ministry MARA, KPTM has grown to be among the biggest Bumiputra educational institutions in t e ount it stu ent en ol ent o 20 000 students spread over seven campuses.

DBS has been working in Malaysia with MARA since the early 1 0s.

This new venture, re-initiated by MARA, involves an educational partnership between KPTM and DBS by which Malaysian students will complete a three-year DBS degree in Malaysia, and then t ns e to Dublin to o lete t e o ession l ount n e in tions o t e sso i tion o te e e ti ie ount nts

A Shanghai story

o nstitute o e nolog ’s o ollege o t Design D signe e o n u o un e st n ing it t e ollege o ine t t ng i nive sit in 2012.

The connection between the two colleges had been est blis e t oug D’s le tu e in gl ss Debbie D son o visite ng i nive sit gl ss e t ent in 2010 n o initi te stu ent n st e nge it o i o ei u ng i e to o t e in Gl ss og e tt e university. o u ng s lso t e in ugu l i e to o t e ng i useu o Gl ss. niti ll e visite el n in 2011 n n es o u G lle oste n e ibition o is o s t o t e is e o Design 2011 oeti s o t e n e’. is s ve well received, and two pieces were donated to CIT and to Cork City Council. n 2012 it t e el o o it oun il t inning g nt t o stu ents o D t velle to ng i nive sit to stu t t e gl ss e t ent o t o ont e io n in turn CCAD hosted two Chinese students, who were based

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Malaysian Dublin Business School student Asiyah Binti Ahmad with Abd Rahim Ahmad from MARA Ireland and Gerry Fahy, DBS Lecturer

o ste ’s eg ee. ll o t e stu ents on t e og e are Government sponsored.

DB is es onsible o t e e i elive n n ge ent o t e og e n e o ve losel it ou e u tion l

inl in e i s n te tiles ile in el n o si il e io o ti e. in e 2012 ou stu ents t o o o n t o o ng i ve bene itte e e o t ee nge og e en ble b t e un ing ovi e o o it oun il t inning og e n o D. it out t e su o t o t e it oun il t inning g nt none o t ese stu ents oul ve been ble to t vel s i l l nn e o D. “The experience the Irish students gained was invaluable, not just o t e s e i list e e tise in gl ss v il ble t t e ng i nive sit but lso o t e ultu e n li e o uge city such as Shanghai.

“The Chinese students also very much enjoyed their time in Ireland, joining with other international students in CIT to travel around Ireland at weekends and to experience the creative t os e e o uni ue t ollege su st e o .

D son s invite in 2012 to elive le tu e on e ti e n to give se ies o o s o s. e lso etu ne to ng i in 201 ees e solo e ibition o e artwork.

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SECTOR PROFILE: EDUCATION Progress in Penang

An important opportunity arose in Malaysia in the mid-1990s for the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), according to Prof Hannah McGee, dean, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, RCSI

Malaysian students have been coming to the RCSI in Dublin since the 1970s. Over time the demand for medical seats in Dublin far outstripped our capacity to accommodate this demand and we needed to look for opportunities to create additional capacity.

An opportunity arose in the mid 1990s with the Penang Development Corporation which was looking to create a medical campus in Penang. It was a perfect match. partner KPTM in this regard. We have two full-time academic staff permanently based in Malaysia. Our Malaysian-based staff are complemented and supported by DBS teaching staff who visit on regular basis. Additionally, KPTM have allocated 20 staff to the programme,” explains DBS chief executive Gerry Muldowney.

“From an educational development aspect, we are essentially bringing the Irish higher education ecosystem to Malaysia, working in partnership with a locally based partner college.”

“There are currently not enough qualified accountants in Malaysia, especially amongst the indigenous Bumiputra population. Successful graduates of this programme will help to meet this demand. For next year [2015/16], we would envisage having about 300 students enrolled on the programme.”

Another DBS project is in Fujian Province, China with Xiamen University, a university founded in 1921 which currently ranks 23rd out of 2,036 higher level institutions in the country and has 38,000 full time students.

The collaboration follows a different type of model to the one in Malaysia, says Muldowney.

“We have been working closely with Xiamen University since 2011 to establish a pathway between our accounting and finance and financial services degree programmes and theirs.

We developed a joint curriculum which allows Xiamen students through a recognised prior learning pathway to enter the final year of the DBS degree programmes in Dublin. Students then have further study options to complete a masters or professional accountancy qualification.

DBS lecturers visit Xiamen University to deliver elements of the programmes during its first three years, which Muldowney says gives Xiamen students an opportunity to experience the Irish higher education learning style.

The first cohort of 27 students from Xiamen University arrived in Ireland last September to complete their final year studies and Muldowney expects this number to rise to 40 for 2015/16.

“We have developed a really strong bond with our partners in Malaysia and China and regularly host visits from academic staff from the respective institutions. The key to our success to date in our Asian education strategy has been the development of strong relationships.” he says. © Asia

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RCSI and University College Dublin created capacity in the pre-clinical years in Dublin and Irish clinical teachers developed and delivered the clinical teaching in Penang using the Irish curriculum.

Our curriculum is delivered by senior Irish clinicians teamed with local clinical leaders in Penang hospitals, following an immersion in life away from home in a Western culture.

In 2013, the 1,000th Penang Medical College doctor graduated with the National University of Ireland Medical Degree, which is the same degree that is conferred on students graduating from the Dublin campus.

In Kuala Lumpur, RCSI is in a public-private government partnership since 2011 involving the RCSI undergraduate curriculum and degree being delivered at Perdana University.

There are 60 students per class each year, with the first class due to graduate in 2016.

“We are now starting to look at Indonesia and are at the finalisation stage of signing an agreement with a leading Turkish university which is based on the Asian side of Istanbul.”

A multidisciplinary approach

Trinity College Dublin (TCD) announced a new Masters in Chinese Studies and the opening of the Trinity Centre for Asian Studies in October 2014.

Dr Lorna Carson, director of the new centre, says these developments grew out of the work TCD has been doing for many years in the area of promoting learning of Asian languages.

“TCD has been teaching Mandarin and Japanese for 20 years and in 2009 came up with a plan to make them credit bearing for all TCD students. It means that a student from any discipline can take a five-credit module in either language – and we subsequently added Korean too – and this would be taken out of their total of 60 credits to achieve a degree.

“The popularity of this initiative really pushed us to grow Asian studies in a more dedicated way, incorporating cultural studies. Seeing the growth in the area, TCD provost and president Dr Patrick Prendergast suggested that we set up a dedicated teaching and research centre to allow students to flourish without being tied to languages.”

The Trinity Centre for Asian Studies launched its i st un e g u te o ule t is e nt o u tion to onte o si n tu ies’ o e ing 0 l es i were immediately filled, according to Larson. “There are now 80 students a year now studying modules across the different Asian languages. TCD wants to create an institutional name for taking a multidisciplinary approach to language learning and Asian studies.”

The first course of its kind in Ireland, the new Masters in Chinese Studies was enabled through a philanthropic donation by Dr Sam Lam, a Trinity alumnus from Hong Kong.

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SECTOR PROFILE: EDUCATION

Achievements in ASIA Professor Brian Norton, president, Dublin Institute of Technology, highlights the institute’s key achievements, especially in relation to Asian links

Professor Brian Norton, president of DIT, Minister Paschal O’Donohoe and Gerry Murphy, CEO of the National Transport Authority at DIT’s new campus in Grangegorman

UK g ine i es ig e u tion’ s l e Dublin nstitute o e nolog D in t e to 100 unive sities o l i e in bot 201 n 201 . is n ing e le ts t e st ong u lit o bot its te ing n ese . t es D st n out is t t not onl o its stu ents g in igo ous g oun ing in elev nt t eo n onte t but t e e onst bl n l t t un e st n ing to e l o l llenges.

G u tes be o e le ing titione s in t ei osen iel s t ese nge o ite tu e to usi enginee ing to jou n lis o to et to ounting otel n ge ent to l .

D s ve e tensive joint ese tivities it olle gues in in . o e le un e t e le e s i o o Ge ell o l le ing innov tions in otoni s ve been e it olle gues in unive sities in bin n Beijing. n

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visu l e i D stu ents ve oll bo te it t ose o t e ng i nstitute o isu l ts. n ong ong t e e e n lin s. ese nge o stu ent e nges in t e iel o o u t esign to usi i ns o ong ong e o ing in D ’s onse v to o usi n D . nJ n eeD s n lu ni st ong tne s i s been est blis e in t e iel o ene g e i ien in buil ings it t e nive sit o o i o.

D is elo ting to single us in Dublin it ent e t t e bo ies t e ti e le ese in o e et os o D . s ell s e i s o ting n so i l esou es ne ilities e ovi e in t e e t o t e us o t e in ub tion o s in o businesses. is buil s on st ong oun tion s ove 1 00 eo le u entl e e lo e in ventu es in ub te in D .

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Ad May 2015.pdf

1

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Purdue University

FINEC, Moscow HongKong Polytechnic

Rochester IT, New York

VIED,Vietnam

Hokkaido University, Japan

OTC, Oman LANITH, Laos

San Francisco State University

KYU, South Korea

TAR UC, Kuala Lumpur

Mozambique Eyecare Project CAPES, Brasilia

Hainan University, China RMIT, Melbourne

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19/05/2015 15:12

SECTOR PROFILE: ICT

The Asia Pacific region has seen strong growth in recent years for Irish ICT product and service providers, according to Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton

Scaling Heights

IRELAND has been successful in attracting information and communication technology (ICT) companies from Asia, particularly given the distances in terms of both geography and culture.

Already, Asian ICT giants such as Huawei, Tencent and Lenovo from China, and Fujitsu, Trend Micro and Gala Games from Japan and Wipro, Aris and Tata Consulting Services from India have strategic operations in Ireland.

As Asian companies develop greater brand awareness and innovation capabilities, we can expect to see a wide range of Asian companies coming to Ireland to join their US peers such as Apple, Facebook and Google.

The pipeline for the next 12 months is strong and is mainly in the areas of IT infrastructure/cloud management, analytics and digital content.

In terms of multinationals, Ireland already has a well-established portfolio of leading ICT clients from the US and Europe, with nine of the top ten leading US technology firms operating from Ireland.

The first wave of investment growth from Asia into Ireland came from business-to-business suppliers that were supplying components and systems for leading western brands.

Now we are seeing a surge in innovative products from Asian b n s D ’s e isting lient u ei is goo e le o t is already carrying out extensive research and development (R&D) activity in Ireland.

As more and more Asian companies develop consumer technology in areas such as mobile communications, wearable technology and gaming, Ireland can build on our existing experience with leading western brands to make a strong investment case for Asian brands going global. n ti ul el n ’s o e ing in t e e l s o lou o uting, big data/analytics and the internet of things will be of great interest to new Asian investors, who are excited by the potential

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opportunities in these areas.

The indigenous software sector comprises some 600 active companies that produce software for applications in finance, enterprise, travel, telecoms, internet, digital media and e-learning.

The sector has grown strongly in Ireland in the past 10 years.

Supporting the continued development of the sector through increasing the number of start-ups and assisting scaling and established companies to increase their international footprint is core to the Enterprise Ireland Strategy 2014–2016 and the Action Plan for Jobs.

The Asia Pacific region has seen strong growth in recent years for world-class Irish ICT product and service providers.

Irish ICT companies have found Australia to be a particularly fruitful market given its similar and familiar business environment.

But in addition there are also close to a billion new connected consumers in the broader region and consequentially strong growth opportunities are opening up in areas such as e-commerce, payment technologies, security, telecoms and travel technology across the diverse markets of China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia.

Irish companies, with Enterprise Ireland support, initially set out to win the all important reference site sale in the region and then tend to build out from regional trading hubs, including Hong Kong and Singapore.

Business in the ICT sector in Asia Pacific is highly competitive but has proven to be a great fit for world-class Irish companies such as Daon, Fexco, Cartrawler, Ding and Monex, to mention but a few.

The Asia Pacific region requires patience and commitment and the challenge in the future is to achieve further scale in these vast and exciting markets.

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SECTOR PROFILE: ICT

The information and communications technology (ICT) sector in Ireland is characterised by well developed links between industry and researchers

Driven by data ONE of the aspects of the Irish information and communications technology (ICT) sector which is likely to carry an increasing amount of weight for potential Asian investors is its emphasis on innovation and research – in particular the close links that exist between industry and researchers in clusters around the country.

In Cork, for example, there are 460 PhD researchers at the National Tyndall Institute, which was established in 2004 with a mission to support industry and academia in driving research to market.

With particular expertise in microelectronics and semiconductors, Tyndall is capable of prototyping new product opportunities for its target industries - electronics, medical devices, energy and communications. n ll’s o un e ins o nies it o o e tions such as US multinationals Analag Devices, Qualcom and Xilinx. It has 200 industry partners. The dynamic of having a cutting edge research institute in a cluster of such companies is of particular interest in Asia,” says Leo Clancy, divisional manager ICT at IDA Ireland.

“Also important to Asian companies is the fact that the researchers at Tyndall are responsible for unique inventions globally. For e le in 2011 t ei b e t oug ese e t e o l ’s first junctionless transistor even smaller. This was a big deal in the world of electronics – it meant that more could fit on a smaller chip so devices such as phones could get smaller.”

Moving to the growing area of data analytics, in December 2013 the €88m Insight Research Centre was launched. The State invested €58m in the centre, with €30m coming from industry.

“Asian business people look for proper scale and credibility and this commitment in Ireland to data analytics delivers that. Science © Asia

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Foundation Ireland CEO Mark Ferguson said it was the biggest single investment by a Government in the world in this area,” says Clancy.

One of the hot topics that Insight researchers are working on now is assisted living and how deep data analytics and sensors can be used to produce products, he notes.

Japanese ICT giant Fujitsu is currently involved in a three-year research project with Irish research institutions TRIL, Casala and Clarity aimed at providing monitoring services and assisted independent living for senior citizens and patients who live in smart houses.

The Irish research institutions have each pursued monitoring, diagnostic support and other advanced activities involving the use of ICT in a variety of scenarios, including medicine and daily life. n o ent to s g ee t t t e inte net o t ings’ is t e ost game-changing trend in the ICT sector and indeed our world now and Ireland is well positioned to embrace this, Clancy maintains.

“There are a lot of good companies in this space in Ireland, including Chinese multinational Huwaei and Japanese firm Trend Micro, which has operations in Cork and is involved in biometrics using personal data, fingerprints and face recognition.

Dublin b se o n D on’s so t e is being use in n i o t e o l ’s l gest bio et i oje t.

In addition, Clancy notes that Intel invented its microchip, the Galileo board at its Leixlip plant in Ireland, which is labelled as Designe in el n ’ sin e e te be 201 .

The Galileo chip is makes high-tech design easy for the manufacturing and educational communities. It is a part of a new highl integ te lo e o e o u t il t t e ten s ntel’s e into the internet of things and wearable markets.

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SECTOR PROFILE: ICT

GOOD

GAMING

David Coughlan, chief executive, Havok

Founded in Dublin, game development technologies company Havok has key markets in Asia, South Korea and China EVER since it was founded in Dublin 15 years ago by Hugh Reynolds and Steven Collins as a spin-out from Trinity College Dublin, provider of game development technologies Havok has been 100pc export focused, which has contributed greatly to its success, according to chief executive David Coughlan.

Acquired by chip giant Intel in 2007 for US$110m in cash, Havok developed a physics engine that is used in many of the top selling computer games for the PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platforms, and its technology has been used in films such as The Matrix, Kingdom of Heaven and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Coughlan says the Havok team was forced to think big and e te n ll l ost o t e o go s t e e sn’t g ing industry in Ireland at the time that it could target its software solutions towards.

“We had to go and knock on the doors of the largest entertainment companies in the world and were forced to prove our product line in some of the most challenging and largest markets in the world. This was a stepping stone to success in other markets.”

Having started with the US and built success there as well as in other western markets, Havok turned its attention towards Asia about eight years ago in the conviction that it had a globally applicable solution.

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Its three key markets in Asia now are Japan, South Korea and China. Experience has shown that each of these markets is very different from a gaming industry perspective, as well as in terms of consumer trends, Coughlan notes.

“It is sometimes tempting to think of Asia as homogenous but this is far from the case. Japan has a mature gaming industry, a strong track record and is home to some of the pioneers of the original video games.

“South Korea and China are newer to the gaming industry, but represent enormous markets. South Korea is one of the largest consumers of video games in the world and a pioneer in PC online games while in China there are many large media companies such as Tencent, which are major players in the global games industry.” vo ’s si n st teg involve t geting t e J nese market first – knowing it would take a sustained effort to establish itself there – and setting up operations on the ground in each market.

“Before entering the Japanese market, the initial step was just to fact find. We networked and talked to anyone we could who was selling product into the region, particularly software related, and thought about how the product would best fit the market,” Coughlan explains.

“We ruled out using a distributor at an early stage, simply

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SECTOR PROFILE: ICT because of the nature of the product. You have to evaluate different industries on their own merits in Japan. Because we are selling a complex software product, we felt we needed our own sales and engineering team on the ground. We incorporated an entity in Japan and Enterprise Ireland helped us to get an office set up in Tokyo.

“We began relatively small, with two or three sales and engineering staff, and applied our standard business model proven out in western markets but on a smaller scale. From there, we grew our presence in a profitable way and then scaled the office in line with the overall growth of the business.

“Now all major publishers of games in Japan are using Havok software tools as an important part of their production process.

Japan has been a real market success for us.”

Coughlan is confident of similar success in South Korea and China, both of which it entered four years ago by establishing local operations in Seoul and Shanghai respectively.

“We hired local people to work at our offices in Seoul and Shanghai as we felt it was important to have our own employees in these markets and that they would feel that they are part of the overall company. We make sure the local sales teams come to global sales conferences and trade shows so they experience the way in which we do business elsewhere,” he says.

“While we are at an earlier stage in South Korea and China compared to Japan, we are at a point where we look across

Asia and see enormous plcs such as Nintendo and Sony using our software as an important component in game production.

We have started doing business with major players in South Korea and China and there is a lot of opportunity to drive our software as a standard in both.” vo ’s su ess in este n ets ut it in t e osition where it was able to at least get in the door of target companies in its three Asian markets, but Coughlan stresses that there was much more to it than when it came to getting deals signed.

“In a market like Japan it is absolutely critical that you have a proven market leading product as the bar is higher there than anywhere else in the world. If you can prove your product to be a success in Japan, you will literally have battle tested exports anywhere.

“When going to meet the Japanese companies however, a t e o in t e est oesn’t uite s u lout s you might expect. They will listen to success stories and they count for something, but Asian companies want to see how you do business in Asia. They want to see a sustained focus on the region.

“Face time is very important and you have to have a local presence on the ground and attend trade fairs. Success and t e u lit o ou o u t e i o t nt but ou integ it s company and your visible commitment to Asian markets matters more.”

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19/05/2015 18:10

SECTOR PROFILE: ICT

VISION

VENTURE

Taoiseach Enda Kenny; Movidius founders Sean Mitchell, COO and David Moloney, CTO; and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Employment Richard Bruton

Computer visioning software and hardware company Movidius received funding from the China Ireland Technology Growth Fund in a successful financing round earlier this year THE CHINA Ireland Technology Growth Fund was one of the lead investors in the successful US$40m financing round announced in April by Movidius, a Dublin-based computer visioning software and hardware company.

Movidius develops low power computer vision processing chips and software for next generation devices and the funding will lead to the creation of up to 100 jobs in Ireland.

This represents one of the largest venture capital investments ever in Ireland for a technology company and the largest globally for a fabless semiconductor company in the past two years.

Movidius currently employs 15 people in Dublin out of a total of 70, the rest working in its operations in Romania and Silicon Valley in the US. It will use the financing to further drive software and hardware product innovation in visual sensing for the next wave of emerging applications, including virtual reality headsets, drones, home automation and wearables.

According to the company, its technology will transform how devices and users interact with the world around them through “intelligent, vision-based technology”.

“Movidius has pioneered an entirely new class of cost effective, low power and high performance processors, software and development tools. This platform enables our customers to implement visual sensing that aims to mirror human vision capabilities,” said Remi El-Ouazzane, CEO of Movidius.

“This significant investment of capital provides us with the resources to expand strategically, innovate constantly and extend our market leadership.”

The China Ireland Technology Growth Fund is an investment

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partnership between the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) n in ’s sove eign e lt un to ssist is te nolog companies in Ireland access new customers and partners in China, and vice versa.

Launched in January 2014, the fund is co-managed by WestSummit Capital, a technology growth capital investor based in Beijing with an office in Silicon Valley, and Atlantic Bridge, a technology growth capital investor based in Dublin with offices in London and Silicon Valley.

The fund targets companies operating in core technology sectors such as internet, software, semiconductors and clean te nolog s ell s e s o te nolog o i t e el n to in ’ n in to el n ’ st teg is uni uel ositione including but not limited to agriculture, food, medical and financial services.

Through its offices in Beijing and Hong Kong, the ChinaIreland fund platform will aim to deliver strategic and tactical support to Movidius to expand its business in the Chinese market.

The €7.2bn ISIF was established in December 2014 with a statutory mandate to invest on a commercial basis in a manner designed to support economic activity and employment in the State.

It has made investment commitments to date of €1.5bn and plans to deploy the remainder over the coming years as suitable investment opportunities are identified. i e to ugene ’ ll g n s i nb ing o nies like Movidius, the ISIF can both support and participate in the considerable growth potential of the Irish technology sector.”

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SECTOR PROFILE: TOURISM

A measured

strategy Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Paschal Donohoe outlines the Irish Government’s strategy to tourism generally and how this impacts on Asian markets

SINCE coming into office in 2011, the current Government has taken a number of fiscal measures to support the Irish tourism sector, including a reduction in VAT from 13.5pc to 9pc, and reducing the Air Travel Tax to zero, as well as initiatives such as The Gathering and the Wild Atlantic Way driving route.

The key issue for the Government today is to ensure that tourism continues to grow in a manner that is economically, socially and environmentally sustainable.

We recognised the need to establish a set of core policy principles that would guide support for tourism in the longer term. eo le l e n oli G o ing ou is to 202 ’ is t e result. It sets out ambitious targets for growth in overseas visits and associated revenue, and increased tourism employment.

By 2025 we want to see overseas tourism revenue of €5bn per year, compared with €3.5bn in 2014; 250,000 people employed in tourism, an increase of 50,000 on the current figure, underpinned by ten million overseas visitors to Ireland per year, which compares with 7.6 million in 2014.

Visitors from long-haul markets such as China and India, the fast-growing markets of the future, are increasingly important for the Irish tourism industry.

Visitors from these markets stay twice as long as the average holidaymaker; they travel more widely around the island and have the propensity to make a significant economic contribution to Irish tourism.

Therefore, in assessing its priorities for future years, Tourism Ireland will have particular regard to the potential of these markets to contribute to increased overseas tourism revenue.

Our marketing efforts should also recognise that Ireland will rarely be the sole destination for prospective travellers but may be included in a wider trip also taking in Great Britain and/or

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continental Europe.

Another key aspect of Government policy that will contribute to increased levels of tourism from Asian markets is the changes that have taken place in Irish visa policy.

In 2014 Ireland and the UK agreed the establishment of the British Irish Visa Scheme (BIVS), under which a visitor to either Ireland or the UK will require only one visa (either an Irish or UK one depending on their first country of landing).

The new scheme is initially being rolled out in China and India, which are priority markets for Tourism Ireland, and the BIVS will assist in driving further growth in overseas tourism revenue from these countries. lso eo le l e n oli e ognises t t in n e o increasing diversity of visitors, and having regard to the more rapid growth in visitors from new markets, the tourism sector should continually review its offerings to ensure that it is meeting the needs and expectations of those from a range of cultural backgrounds.

Recognising the strong correlation between air connectivity, tourism development and economic growth generally in Ireland, a e obje tive o el n ’s t tion l vi tion oli is to e te conditions to encourage the development of new routes and services from Ireland, particularly to new and emerging markets, including Asian markets.

The policy to develop Dublin Airport as a secondary hub airport, competing effectively with other European Airports for the expanding global aviation services market, directly supports this objective.

In addition, Tourism Ireland has been working with the relevant authorities including airports and airlines to make it easier for Asian visitors to come here.

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SECTOR PROFILE: TOURISM

Spotlight on

China and India

China and India are the focus of Tourism Ireland’s marketing activities in Asia, says chief executive Niall Gibbons in n n i o e ing onsi e ble o o tunities o tou is to t e isl n o el n in t e e iu to long te ou is el n ’s in e se tivit in t ese ets is ing o it ste il g o ing nu be s o bot ount ies. o ing to t e gen ’s ie e e utive i ll Gibbons visito nu be s e in e sing o bot ets ti ul l in . Bet een 2010 n 201 visito s t velling o in to el n in e se o oun 11 000 to 000. isito s o n i e n ile e e u o oun 1 000 to 2 000 ove t e s e e io . e le ting t e g o ing i o t n e o t ese ets t e gen u entl s o e tions in t e jo inese outboun ities o Beijing ng i Gu ng ou n eng u s ell s in u b i n Del i in n i . e inese et is seen s ti ul l i o t nt o o tunit . ts outboun t vel et is no t e biggest in t e ol it o e t n 100 illion eo le e e te to t vel o in in 201 n oun illion o t e boun o u o e. t t e o ent 2 u o e n ount ies e to t e engen is s e e i llo s tou ists to t vel it out vis n bo e ont ols. el n n t e e not u entl t o t e s e e but ve e entl int o u e t e B itis is is e e i Gibbons es ibes s big to ou ou in 201 n be on . e s e e llo s eo le t velling into t e o el n on eit e o is vis to t vel oun n to t e isl n s. eviousl t e oul ve e ui e t o se te vis s.

Fota fit

ile inese tou ists ven’t et is ove e el n in g e t nu be s t e et o e s uge o o tunit to t e in ust in el n s s e us e eting i e to o t e o b se ot olle tion. onsisting o ot sl n eso t t e ingsle otel n estin tion n ge ent o n D G een el n nte n tion l t e ot olle tion is o ne b t e inese ng il .

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ou is el n e entl signe e o n u o un e st n ing it isit B it in o joint o otions oun t e s e e. lse e e ile t e e is u entl no i e t lig t bet een el n n in Gibbons is o ti isti . ve t e st nu be o e s t e nu be o eo le t veling bet een in n el n is u ne 0 000. o t e nu be s e getting lose to t e oint e e e eel t t i e t lig t is on t e s in t e s o t to e iu te . ou is el n s lso e u its eting tivit in in in e ent e s. e o it t e t vel t e out t e e to t to get t e to in lu e el n in t ei og es eet e ven’t one so be o e. n e en ent t vel is onl g o ing in in t e tou o e to is ve i o t nt so t t el tions i is iti l. e’ve ut toget e nu be o set itine ies o t e o t ings li e gol gove n ent t vel one oon business t vel to give s le o ll t e t ings to see n o. e gen lso le s s les ission to in e e it oun 20 is o nies t ing t. st e ’s ission visite Beijing ng i Gu ng ou n eng u n t e ti i ting o nies i in lu e Guinness to e ouse it ni Bel st n t e li s o o e eng ge it ove 00 tou o e to s n oun 00 eetings bet een t e .

B si ll it’s s ee ting to get t e ess ge oss o ll t e t ings t e e e to see n o in el n Gibbons s s. e lso o ve losel it inte n tion l e i . n ou so i l e i esen e is ve i o t nt. u el n . o ebsite is u in n in n ntonese n e e lso

n ition to t e g ou ’s o n otels t e D o s it nge o is ig en o o tion s o ing n sig tseeing estin tions to tt t inese tou ists into el n . e s s its tne s e o nies t t ve e n e o t to t in so e to t is t get et b o e le e lo ing inese s e e s ving inese signs e ting nion o e ing ut enti inese oo o ving inese television nnels.

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SECTOR PROFILE: TOURISM active on both Tencent and Sino Weibo and have around half a million fans at this stage and growing.” esi ent i el D iggins’ o i i l t te visit to in l st December was another opportunity to highlight Ireland as a destination. “We invited 150 top travel operators and media to a specific tourism event where the President spoke about Ireland,” Gibbons notes. not e ele ent o ou is el n ’s o is to el t e industry in Ireland to be better prepared for Chinese tourists. “For example, the Chinese love shopping and the ability to accept Chinese UnionPay cards is really important,” Gibbons says. “If you go to places like Brown Thomas and Kildare Village, they no ll t is l e . e’ e t ing to e u te ot e eo le to o that as well.” ou is el n ’s o in si ill ontinue to o us on in n n i o t e o ent Gibbons s s. e ’ e t e signi i nt markets. There are other markets that deliver numbers in terms of volu e but t e ’ e s ll n e just el on t e lo l e b ssies

Priorities for Chinese visitors

Shopping is top of the agenda for most Chinese visitors.

“They will be looking for the big, luxury brands which can be a third of the cost of what they are back in China,” says Niall Gibbons ie e e utive o ou is el n . t’s o ten t e main inspiration for their trip to Europe.”

“Chinese travellers want the authenticity of the experience of buying brands in Europe,” says Andrew Marshall, director of Kildare Village. “Accessories such as bags are particularly important, with DKNY, Hugo Boss and Coach being among the most particular brands that appeal to our Chinese visitors.”

Unsurprisingly, sightseeing is also an important part of the itine . t’s ve u bout ti ing bo es s s Gibbons.

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to facilitate any enquiries that come in. t’s e ll i o t nt t t e on’t s e ou selves too t in and that we go in and are very focused in relation to the markets e’ e o ing in n o it ve u in e el n o working in a collaborative fashion with the other agencies like IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland.”

Kildare illage’s No 1 non E

mar et

in is il e ill ge’s o 1 non et n currently represents 37pc of its tax refund sales, says its director, Andrew Marshall.

“Most Chinese tourists come to the village in groups organised by tour operators and we have seen a huge growth in Chinese students who are studying in Ireland who regularly come to the village with visiting friends and family,” he says.

The outlet has taken a range of steps to cater for its Chinese visitors. “We have at least 20 Mandarin speakers across our boutiques with an emphasis on strong cultural training,” says Marshall. “Our website is available in Mandarin and there is Mandarin literature available to visitors in the village.” In addition UnionPay is now accepted in most of its boutiques. il e ill ge is o ne b lue et il i u entl o e tes nine lu u ill ge’ outlets oss u o e n one so far in China, with Shanghai Village due to open in s ing 201 . lue et il e entl nnoun e ne tne s i it ti i ounts o 0 o in ’s total online travel service market, bringing Kildare Village to a wider Chinese audience. il e ill ge s s onso e Dublin’s inese e Year Festival for the last five years.

There will be a list of things that they want to see and do.

“The itinerary would typically be exceptionally packed so they can get their picture taken at as many places as ossible s s ot olle tion’s e us e . n s e is i o t nt n t e i e o t e le n g een island is something that really does appeal,” says Gibbons.

“When the now President Xi Jinping came to Ireland in 2012 and visited the Cliffs of Moher, it had an enormous impact on the number of Chinese visitors.”

According to Tourism Ireland, the top five attractions for Chinese travellers are: Guinness Storehouse, Titanic in Bel st Gi nt’s use ive n e n init ollege.

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SECTOR PROFILE: FINANCE

A global centre for international financial services With over 500 international financial institutions operating in Ireland, the country has become a world-leading financial services centre employing over 33,000 people across a range of areas.

ESTABLISHED in 1987 in Dublin, the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) set out to create employment and offer in n i l se vi es i s t e v nt ges o el n ’s g o ing technology infrastructure, multiple time zone accessibility, availability of a talented and educated English-speaking o o e n innov tive it to g o t ei se vi es. o t e is o e to ove 00 i s it o e tions spreading to more than 20 counties throughout Ireland, contributing €2.1bn to t e e e ue n ounting o . o is GD .

The IFSC focuses on a variety of key areas in international financial services (IFS) including banking, fund and investment n ge ent ents n insu n e.

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e i i ll eg ing el n ’s o e ing o si n in n i l services firms, aviation finance is a major source of Asian invest ent in el n it n o t e to si n in n i ls setting u in t e .

Dublin is glob l it l o vi tion in n e it ove 0 o t e o l ’s o e i l i t leet ove 110bn in ssets n ge o el n it ouble t tion t e t net o ove ing n si n tne s. sl i in n e is st g o ing e e e el n is see ing to e n its e to si n tne s t oug su o tive legisl tive in st u tu e se to e e tise n e se o ess to uo e n ets. ontinue on

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SECTOR PROFILE: FINANCE

Asia Pacific aviation opportunity SET to continue to be the fastest growing region for aviation for at least the next 20 years, Asia Pacific is a key focus market for the global leasing sector, around 50pc of which is based in Ireland. In their respective long term global market outlooks, Boeing and Airbus estimate that at least 40pc of the new deliveries for aircraft over the next 20 years will be going into the Asia Pacific region, says Tom Woods, head of aviation finance and leasing at KPMG Ireland.

“These deliveries will probably be valued at around US$2trn and the overall fleet size will probably treble in that period.

“Ireland as the centre of leasing into that region is going to be heavily in luen e b its evelo ent. o it’s ve i o t nt egion o t e is aviation sector.”

A notable trend in recent years has been growing involvement in the market by some of the Chinese and Japanese banks, which have either set up their own leasing operations in Ireland or have invested into Irish platforms, he s s. i ee le s B ’s uisition o B vi tion it l o US$7.3bn in 2013.

Of the individual markets in Asia, China is by far the largest. “Indonesia is also a very active market. And Japan is undergoing major re-fleeting at the o ent so t e e’s ve st ong e n t e e.

The market is also being impacted by the growth of low-cost carriers (LCCs). e e e lot o s evelo ing in t e egion n t e ’ e being in n e lot by the lessors as well,” says Woods.

“The broad theme is it is by far the largest growing sector from an aviation perspective. The carriers are financing a lot of the aircraft through the lessors n t t is e e te to ontinue to g o uite signi i ntl ove t e ne t 20 years.” © Asia

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SECTOR PROFILE: FINANCE Another area for future expansion in Asian markets is shipping finance. With a view to emulating the success of the aviation sector, the offering could include leasing, innovative debt structuring products and specialist maritime services, including securitising and listing, which would provide major new opportunities in the IFSC for many Asian financial services firms.

Government strategy to drive growth

The Government has set out its new strategy to drive growth in IFS for the next five years. The strategy covers key aspects such s en n ing el n ’s b n in t e se to essing t e glob l talent and skills needs for the future and importantly developing jobs creation opportunities for Ireland. The strategy has targeted the creation of 10,000 net new jobs in the IFS sector by 2020.

In addition to the ambitious job creation targets, the strategy has t gete in st u tu e evelo ent in Dublin’s n Do l n s area to enable the rate of growth required in the city.

Dublin’s t tegi Develo ent one’ D is n initi tive o

Dublin City Council, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the National sset n ge ent gen to evelo e sites to elive high specification commercial office space to meet the future needs of financial services firms and investors in Dublin.

Di e tl un e b t e D s ie out so e substantial projects including a partnership with Oxley Holdings t ing o e b se o et i to evelo 000 s t o Grade A office space in a site within the IFSC. This initiative aims to e te t e in st u tu e to ontinue Dublin’s g o t s glob l IFS centre.

Further to his keynote address at the Asian Financial Forum, which attracts some 2,600 visitors to Hong Kong, Minister of State o nte n tion l B n ing in lu ing t e i on is s outlined his plan to hold an IFS summit in Dublin to showcase el n ’s o e ing n tt t ne invest ent.

It is evident that Asian financials will make up a major part of this new investment as they grow internationally and seek top-class global IFS centres to expand their operations.

Expansion of double tax treaty network Chris Quinn, partner in Matheson’s banking and financial services department highlights an aspect of Ireland’s tax regime which appeals to aviation leasing investment from outside the country.

THE Irish tax authorities are very active in increasing the number of treaties to which Ireland is a party, particularly with emerging market and Middle-East jurisdictions. t e ties l e ole in el n ’s su ess ul le sing industry by reducing or eliminating withholding taxes on inbound lease rental payments. They allow Irish lessors to claim tax credits against their Irish corporation tax for any unrelieved foreign withholding taxes.

Ireland has now signed 72 double tax treaties, 68 of which are already in force. The most recently signed double tax treaties include those with Ethiopia, Botswana, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia,

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Armenia and Egypt.

Until recently, an Irish lessor could not claim a similar tax credit for foreign withholding taxes where no tax treaty applied.

However, in a welcome development, an Irish lessor carrying on a trade in Ireland may now also claim a tax credit for foreign withholding taxes on lease rentals where there is no applicable tax treaty. The relief is granted on a unilateral basis by Irish domestic law.

This latest improvement will position Ireland as an attractive leasing jurisdiction for leasing aircraft and other assets into jurisdictions which do not have a wide tax treaty network.

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FUNDS

FLOWING

Pat Lardner, chief executive of the Irish Funds Industry Association, explains why Asia is increasingly important to the funds sector in Ireland

WITH its growing middle class population and relatively low proportion of household wealth currently invested via financial markets or collective investment funds, Asia continues to offer significant opportunity for the Irish funds industry.

A sizeable portion of individual or household wealth in the region currently sits in cash deposits, but people are increasingly engaged in the idea of saving in a structured way as they start planning for their future financial requirements. China is also in the process of trying to internationalise its currency and is starting to open up its capital accounts and portfolio flows to facilitate this.

We believe the Irish funds industry can act as a bridge and facilitate global fund managers accessing securities markets in the region. For example, the recently announced Shanghai Hong Kong Stock Connect scheme, which will allow investors to gain access to A shares, is a very positive development as it increases the investment universe for global investors, increases the product set for international investment managers, and will also allow an opening up of flow outward.

Going forward, investors in China will look to augment their exposure to the domestic economy with exposure elsewhere in the world. And we think those domestically based Chinese investment managers will want to source investment capital internationally and internationalise their business. We would hope to partner and encourage them to utilise Ireland and some of the European product constructs that we have such as UCITS and AIFMD. The importance of the region is reflected in the level of activity in Asia by the Irish Funds Industry Association. In 2014 alone, we held four events in Hong Kong, as well as events in Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney. We also published a number of editions of © Asia

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our newsletter for Chinese asset managers. el n ’s b ss o s n e b ssies ve been ve supportive, particularly in Beijing, Tokyo and Singapore and a key development has been the establishment of a permanent consul in Hong Kong which we advocated for very strongly. In terms of working with different agencies, like IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, we are increasingly joined up. I think there is a very good level of cohesion between what the Government is trying to do n t e’ e t ing to o.

There have also been a number of positive developments over the last 18 months. Last October, the Irish Funds Industry Association signed a memorandum of understanding with the Asset Management Association of China in Beijing, a significant positive step in promoting closer co-operation, understanding and support between the industries in China and Ireland.

Earlier in the year, the Irish domiciled CSOP Source FTSE China A50 UCITS Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) became the first of its kind to offer European investors access to the China A-Shares equity market.

This development blends the credibility and widespread use of Irish domiciled UCITS funds with the RQFII quota scheme and has opened up an exciting opportunity for retail and institutional investo s see ing i e t ess to one o t e o l ’s ost important and untapped equity markets.

This is a significant milestone for the Irish funds industry and is a clear demonstration that it remains ahead of the curve when it comes to enabling investment firms to broaden their distribution reach through innovative, well-structured and efficient products.

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Soaring

success

Over half of the world’s commercial aircraft fleet is managed from Ireland with nearly 900 aircraft owned by Asian-based lessors, according to Yvonne Thompson partner in the financial services tax practice, and Gavan Neary, tax director at PwC

IRELAND is regarded as one of the most attractive and tax efficient locations for leasing assets in the world.

In particular, it is ranked as the No 1 location for leasing aircraft with 14 of the top 15 aircraft lessors located here, including GE Capital Aviation Services, AerCap, and a number of Chinese and Asia-based lessors such as Bank of China, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Minsheng Bank, China Development Bank, BOCOM, China Aircraft Leasing Company and SMBC Aviation Capital. o te ove 0 o t e o l ’s o e i l i t leet is managed from Ireland with nearly 900 aircraft owned by Asianbased lessors. el n ’s le sing in ust s been in e isten e o ove years and is recognised as having pioneered the development of a supportive tax and legal environment adapted to the requirements of the leasing industry.

The aircraft leasing industry is projected to grow strongly. Within the next five years over 900 million extra passengers will fly with 450 million from Asia (including 200 million from China alone).

The Irish Government is committed to the growth and development of the leasing industry in Ireland and is focused on ensu ing t t it int ins its osition s one o t e o l ’s preferred leasing jurisdictions.

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An Taoiseach Enda Kenny said: “The Irish government has consistently sought to ensure that Ireland not only maintains its position in the global air finance sector, but also continues to avail of new opportunities as the sector evolves. We have ensured that a balanced tax and regulatory regime kept pace with industry developments.” ve t ese e s el n s built u t lent ool o over 1,200 people with a unique level of specialist expertise and commercial experience. The industry is also serviced by locally-based professional services firms with industry knowledge including lawyers, tax advisers, accountants, corporate service providers and specialist lease management companies.

On the tax side, a leasing company can avail of: • •

A low corporation tax rate of 12.5pc on its leasing profits (provided the company has sufficient activities and substance in Ireland) An accelerated tax depreciation write-off period of eight years that is significantly quicker than other leasing locations. This in conjunction with the ability of an Irish company to carry forward trading losses indefinitely should typically result in a deferral of any cash tax payable for the first 10–12 years of the life of an asset © Asia

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Did you know?

32,700 people are directly employed in the Irish financial services industry

€

80pc

Almost of Ireland’s double tax treaties deliver a favourable witholding tax result for aircraft leasing companies

72nd

place in the most Dublin ranks expensive cities in the world, a 40-place drop in three years

•

• •

•

•

•

A strong double tax treaty network of 72 that is extensive and growing (10 of which are entered into with Asian countries).

The majority of these provide for zero withholding tax on inbound lease rentals, which should eliminate any foreign taxes arising Generally speaking, no withholding tax on payment of interest or dividends to investors/financiers based in EU/double tax treaty jurisdictions Low rates/elimination of tax on gains on sale of aircraft and exit from Ireland; a beneficial indirect tax regime for aircraft leasing. The leasing of most aircraft is zero rated for VAT purposes and there are a number of stamp duty exemptions applying to the transfer/lease of aircraft Attractive income tax breaks for key foreign executives relocating to Ireland and also for employees based in Ireland who spend significant amounts of time working in specified key jurisdictions On the legal side Ireland has a well developed, sophisticated and reputable legal system. It is regarded as a good location for registering ownership interests in aircraft and enforcing security where lessees are in default In the absence of any minimum debt:equity requirements and with a wide number of domestic withholding tax exemptions,

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50pc of the world’s

commercial aircraft fleet is managed from Ireland - that’s over €83 billion in assets

No 1

Ireland is for availability of skilled labour, investment incentives, flexibility and attitudes to globalisation

by IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2012

eight-year

Ireland has an write off of capital spend for tax purposes compared with a typical 20-25 year economic life Ireland is ranked as the in Europe

Yvonne Thompson, partner in the financial tax services tax practice, PwC

•

No 1 place to pay tax

Gavan Neary tax director at PwC

Irish leasing companies can be flexible in how they finance the purchase of aircraft There are also a number of tax efficient structured finance and investment vehicles available. These can be tailored to the requirements of the individual leasing company to maximise its ability to raise capital and facilitate the ease of repatriation of profits from its leasing activities and disposal of aircraft.

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PROFILES

Partnership

priority

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Charlie Flanagan explains the importance of Ireland’s relationship with Asia THE rise of Asia is transforming the way the world works. In the near future, Asia will not only be the most populous region in the world, but also the largest economic zone. e is Gove n ent’s e ou is n nvest ent Strategy identifies nine Asian countries among its priority, with exploratory and high potential markets.

We now have embassies in each of these nine priority Asian markets, where our ambassadors lead local market teams comprised of local State agency representatives, all working to o ote el n n el n ’s inte ests in t e ount in uestion.

Government-to-government level engagement is particularly important in Asia, where in many countries economic activities are strictly controlled and regulated by the state.

High level ministerial visits and trade missions enhance el n ’s visibilit in t e egion n ovi e v lu ble o o tunities to engage with government partners there.

In 2014 there was a number of high level ministerial visits and exchanges between Ireland and several Asian countries. Last autumn also saw us open three new missions in Asia – embassies in Thailand and Indonesia and a consulate general in Hong Kong.

This is a symbol of the importance that the Government attaches to the region. It also constitutes recognition that doing business in Asia means investing time in building relationships.

Staff from my department are now on the ground in Bangkok, Jakarta and Hong Kong, working to set up and establish these embassies and to further develop bilateral linkages with the countries concerned.

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China – a major focus of Irish trade

As the second largest economy in the world, China is a major focus of our trade, tourism and investment efforts. A strategic partnership agreement between China and Ireland, launched u ing oise n enn ’s visit in 2012 ovi es framework to deepen bilateral engagement with this important partner.

On 17 May this year I signed a diplomatic visa waiver g ee ent it iniste o o eign i s o t e eo le’s Republic of China Wang Yi. The Agreement on Mutual Exemption for Holders of Diplomatic and Service (Official) Passports provides that holders of valid diplomatic and, in some circumstances, official passports of both ount ies ill be e e t o vis e ui e ents o visits o u to 90 days to the other country.

Visits at ministerial and senior official level to and from China are particularly important to developing the official and legal frameworks within which our bilateral relationship can continue to flourish. This agreement will facilitate visits and intensify cooperation on both sides.

A programme of high-level visits to China has boosted political and economic ties, culminating in a highly successful State visit by President Michael D Higgins in December 2014. I accompanied President Higgins on this State visit, together with Minister for Finance Michael Noonan.

While in Beijing, I signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at supporting closer linkages between Ireland and China.

The wide ranging agreement will promote and encourage greater people-to-people links and build on the strategic partnership

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Country

agreement. It will boost research, education and technology ties between Ireland and China.

A number of successful trade missions were led by my ministerial colleagues to China last year. Agriculture is one of our priority sectors and food and drink exports to China have tripled in the past three years. China is on course to become our second biggest market in this sector.

The recent announcement by China that it will lift its ban on beef imports from Ireland is to be greatly welcomed.

Key developments in other markets

The relationship between Ireland and India is getting ever stronger and our challenge is to maintain this positive momentum, in particular in the areas of trade, investment, tourism and education.

Like China and Malaysia, India is a priority market in the international education sector and Minister of State for Skills and Innovation Damien English led a three-day education trade mission to India in November 2014, aimed at attracting Indian students to study in Ireland and to enhance collaborations on projects between Irish and Indian higher education institutions.

The agreement of the Partnership for Prosperity and Growth bet een el n n J n u ing t e oise ’s visit t e e in 2013 sets out a number of economic opportunities for Ireland, including boosting two-way trade and investment, particularly in the areas of financial services, food, ICT, health-tech and ecotech; pursuing deeper co-operation between Japan and Ireland in R&D and innovation; and building people-to-people links through tourism and education exchanges.

The Taoiseach subsequently had the occasion to meet with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during the ASEM Summit in Milan in October 2014. ve t e ou se o t e t t i ’s D e io in 201 t e Irish Government Ministers visited five Asian countries – China, India, Japan, South Korea and Singapore – where they worked to promote trade and investment opportunities for Ireland and engaged with the governments and Irish communities there.

The year ahead

Ireland has world-class produce and the possibility to ramp up production – especially in the dairy sector with the lifting of the production cap – offers great opportunities in Asian markets, where the middle class is growing rapidly and consumption is below potential. Research into food and food technology also offers new opportunities as does food tourism.

There is also great potential in terms of encouraging students from Asia to attend university and to study in Ireland. When she visited China last October, Minister for Education and Skills Jan ’ ulliv n se u e n g ee ent t t el n ill be e ognise as the country of honour at the Chinese Education Expo in October 2016.

Other opportunities exist in this sector right across Asia, where t ee o t e si io it ets i enti ie in t e Gove n ent’s International Education Strategy are located – China, India and Malaysia.

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PROFILES

markets is great.

We have always had strong educational and business linkages with Singapore and the Philippines. Singapore and Ireland are both members of the Small Advanced Economies Initiative and Singapore is a regional hub for many Irish businesses. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has its headquarters in Manila in the Philippines. Ireland is a member of and a contributor to the ADB. e DB’s in tne s e gove n ents t e iv te sector, non-governmental organisations, development agencies, community-based organisations and foundations. Given the range of partnerships there may be opportunities for Irish companies to work on ADB-financed projects in the region.

Irish Aid in Asia

ietn ’s su ess in e u ing ss ove t is ell o u ente it t e o i i l ove t te lling o in 1 2 to 1 in 2012. However, the rate of poverty reduction is slowing down and inequality is on the rise. Significant numbers of people continue to live in ove t n ietn is n e 12 out o 1 ount ies on the UN Human Development Index.

Vietnam is a key partner country for Irish Aid. In addition to the development co-operation programme, Ireland actively promotes trade and investment opportunities with Vietnam, an area that has been expanding rapidly particularly in the spheres of education, aviation, ICT, agriculture and food, with huge potential for further development.

In 2014, the embassy in Hanoi reopened the market for Irish pork meat. Irish pork suppliers and processors were successfully registered with the Vietnamese authorities for the importation of is o to ietn . n J nu 201 t e i st i o ts o is pork came into the Vietnamese market.

In addition to the programme in Vietnam, Irish Aid also supports modest bilateral development programmes of assistance for Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. These three post-conflict countries are the poorest members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

In the wake of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in late 2013, for example, the Irish Government provided funding and supplies worth over €7.1m for lifesaving emergency response and longerterm recovery and reconstruction support.

In Indonesia, since the first embassy official landed there last July, the new mission has been working on identifying priority economic areas for Ireland. There is great potential for increased educational exchanges and tourism.

The launch of the ASEAN economic community later this year will be another important stage for Indonesian and regional trade, including for example in Thailand, which is also a high potential market.

Myanmar too is opening up rapidly, with a strong Irish presence working there in telecommunications and infrastructure development.

Although the poorest country in ASEAN, it is developing rapidly and there are business and trade opportunities in a range of sectors, including power generation and distribution, infrastructure and building materials, telecoms and aviation.

It is clear that the region presents many opportunities for Ireland and Asia will remain firmly on our agenda in the coming year.

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CHINA

A new

normal AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Xu Jianguo

CHINA is undergoing a process of economic restructuring. As the largest developing economy with a population accounting for a fifth o t e o l ’s tot l its et potential is huge for Ireland.

Ireland boasts strong advantages in t e i te li e s ien es n agri-food industries. Against this b g oun bot si es oul u t e into o t e o le ent e ot e

n s oul loo economically.

China has built up a competitive edge in sectors such as ine tele o uni tions n le n ene g ongst ot e s. inese o nies u ei B vi tion e sing n Being te D i e just e e les o inese ente ises faring well in Ireland. n J nu 201 in nvest ent o o tion n el n ’s tion l ensions ese ve un jointl est blis e t e in el n e nolog G o t it l un 100 invest ent vehicle which set a new mode of co-operation in investment between both countries.

I believe bilateral trade and two-way investment will continue to g o in e s li e i o u tion i t le sing n .

China has a large population as well as a rapidly growing i le l ss i s e it one o t e o l ’s ost o ising i ets. o ti isti bout is n inese o nies ut e t ing t e uge otenti l t t e ists e e in te s o utu ll e ing business lin s. o ing to Bo Bi is oo n beve ge e o ts to in reached € 20 in 201 in e sing b l ost 0 . in s 42 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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be o e one o t e l gest ets o is oo n in outsi e t e . u ning to e u tion t e is Gove n ent n is unive sities promote Ireland as a great destination for high quality third-level education as well as English language learning.

Recent years have seen a significant deepening of the e u tion l el tions i bet een el n n in i s be o e e et o is e u tion l institutions.

I believe this positive momentum will continue in 2015. I also hope more and more Irish students will choose to go to China to further their studies.

Business eo le t in ing o oing business in in i st n foremost have to understand the business culture and potential opportunities and identify the potential issues associated with et ent is n ge ent ultu l s o s n l ngu ge barriers.

It is also crucially important to study some official documents ele se b in ’s ent l gove n ent to g in bette insig t into oli io ities. t soun s li e toug n unting llenge but t e e is s o t ut i is to e uit e e ien e inese management staff to help to adapt in an easier and more efficient way.

Due to si il e e ien es in o e n isto t e eo les o in n el n s e so e vi tues n v lues su s iligen e u ilit v luing t itions n tt ing signi i n e to families – which has in my view paved the way for a good mutual understanding.

I am encouraged by the continued increase in the number o is eo le le ning t e inese l ngu ge i oul undoubtedly bring our two nations closer than ever.

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CHINA

Key facts...

National population: 1.37 billion (estimate) List of top five cities and population of each: – Beijing: 21 million – Shanghai: 24 million – Tianjin: 15 million – Chongqing: 29 million – Guangzhou: 13 million ■ Area: 9.6 million sq km ■ Timezone: GMT + 8 ■ Currency: renminbi, also referred to as RMB ■ Religions: China has been a multi-religion country since the ancient times.

Buddhism, Taoism, Christian are the most popular religions ■ Language/s: Chinese ■ Bilateral trade with Ireland: US$6.5bn (source: China Customs, excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) ■ Irish exports to China: US$3.7bn (source: China Customs, excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) ■ Chinese exports to Ireland: US$2.8bn (source: China Customs, excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) ■ GDP: 63tr RMB or US$10tr (source: China’s STAS) ■ GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$17.6tr (source: IMF) ■ Real GDP growth: – 2011: 9.3pc – 2012: 7.7pc – 2013: 7.7pc – 2014: 7.5pc (prediction/target) – 2015: 7.0pc (prediction/target) ■ Growth rate: From 2012 to 2015 is 7.8pc, 7.7pc, 7.4pc and 7pc respectively ■ GDP per capita (current prices): US$7,350 (source: China’s STAS) ■ GDP per capita (PPP): US$13,000 (source: IMF) ■ GDP share of world total: 16pc (source: IMF) ■ GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 10pc, industry 43pc and services 47pc ■ ■

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW in ’s g o t te in 201 s belo . o tivel lo e t n evious e s esulting o se ies o e ono i est u tu ing e su es. e o e st o 201 b t e ent l gove n ent is . te e s o ouble igit g o t t e inese gove n ent is no vo ting ne no l’ o slo e e nsion. n t e o s o inese e ie i e i ng in is no t su u i l st ge t t it out st u tu l t ns o tion n u g ing it ill not be ble to ieve sust ine e ono i g o t . in is no t ing to ove o ne ot le g o t o el uelle b gove n ent invest ent to one iven b ig e o esti onsu tion n l ge se vi es se to . e o e s i it o t e ne no l is to e ognise t e e lit o e ono i g o t en u e t e ve sit o st u tu l just ent voi l ge s le sti ulus ge n o ote t e t ns o tion n u g ing o t e e ono t oug e o . ining in ’s t e o it e o s t e e is e son to e in o ti isti bout t e et’s esilien e. e st ego t te ill be o e le ible o less i essive but t e st u tu e o t e e ono ill be g u ll o ti ise n t e u lit o it i ove . in

NATIONAL FLAG The flag of the People’s Republic of China is a red field charged in the canton (upper corner nearest the flagpole) with fi e golden stars. The design features one large star with four smaller stars in a semicircle set off towards the fly. The red represents the communist re olution the fi e stars and their relationship represent the unity of the Chinese people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. Sometimes, the flag is referred to as the ‘ i e star Red lag’.

■ ■

NATIONAL DAY: 1 October 19 9 DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN CHINA AND IRELAND: 22 June 1979

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CHINA

ENHANCING CONNECTIONS Hong Kong has a long-standing history of connections with Ireland, explains Peter Ryan, Consul General THE Government of Ireland decided in 2014 to open a full Consulate General in Hong Kong to support the long-standing Irish community and focus on the growing economic opportunities that exist.

The setting up of the first consulate in Hong Kong should be viewed in the context of the broader relationship between Ireland and China. e el n ’ in in is le b b ss o ul v n g in the Embassy of Ireland, Beijing, working closely with Bord Bia, nte ise el n D el n n ou is el n t e e.

Hong Kong has a rich history of connections with Ireland and is home today to between 3,000 and 5,000 Irish citizens. For any visitor to ong ong st eet n es su s onn ug t enness o ’ Brien Road are a constant reminder of the impact of many Irish-born people here. e io it o us is to ovi e o l l ss onsul se vi es to our citizens and to engage with them on a wide range of issues.

In addition, we are working to reconnect with people of Irish heritage, Hong Kong people who have lived in Ireland or been educated in Ireland and friends of Ireland from the international community.

From an economic perspective, Hong Kong is a hub for world t e n in n e n is t e o l ’s eig t l gest t ing e ono o e ing ess to t e e l ive Delt egion.

It also has strengths as a regional investment and trade hub. The ambitious Hong Kong Stock Connect initiative has cemented its position as the primary offshore centre for the internationalisation of in ’s u en .

It is already an important market for Irish goods and services, notably in the areas of food and beverages, financial services, and education, with tremendous potential for further growth. s glob l it ong ong is n i o t nt l t o o showcasing many of the finest proponents of Irish culture, including our dance, sports, literature and music.

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Team Ireland has already directly organised a range of cultural events and built a network of contacts in the sector.

Hong Kong is an enjoyable and challenging environment in which to operate with a high premium placed on excellence. So from el n ’s oint o vie t is e ns t t eve t ing e o s to be to the highest standards.

We have enjoyed a warm welcome on all fronts and a readiness on the part of the Hong Kong government, as well as local, Irish and broader expatriate communities, to support our efforts.

Going forward, a key priority is to enhance relations between the Irish and Hong Kong governments and since the opening of the consulate we are delighted that there have been three visits exchanged.

Minister Simon Harris visited Hong Kong in January 2015 to address t e si n in n i l o u n eet it in n i l e et Jo n Tsang and Treasury Secretary KC Chan. He also addressed a seminar oste b t e is un s n ust sso i tion n oun t ble session with the Irish Chamber of Commerce of Hong Kong.

In addition, he visited Macau as the first Irish Government Minister to meet with his counterpart and also met with the new Macau Irish Chamber of Commerce. n o t is e iniste l n ell visite ong ong t t e end of his visit to China. His three-day programme included meetings it t e e et ies o t e nvi on ent n o e i s in ong Kong, as well as with key Irish and local business people and companies, and the Irish Chamber of Commerce.

Chief Secretary Carrie Lam visited Dublin in early May this year, which will be the first visit to Ireland by the leading official in the Hong Kong administration.

In the area of economic promotion, we are focusing on five specific areas: financial services, technology, education, food and beverage, and tourism – all of which offer excellent opportunities for Irish companies and for deeper collaboration.

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CHINA

AGENT OF

TRAVEL Datalex opened an office in Beijing in June 2014 and recently secured its second airline customer in the People’s Republic of China DUBLIN-BASED e-commerce solutions provider to the travel industry Datalex secured its second airline customer in the eo le’s e ubli o in in est i u t e to o ening its ne o i e in Beijing in June 201 . est i is lo ost ie t t o e tes o ong ing. ts ent o n in n i lines o n t is t e l gest iv tel o ne i t ns o t o n n t e ou t l gest i line in te s o leet si e in t e ount . e D t le o e e l t o no se ves t e igit l s o ing nee s o est i ’s s e ule ssenge net o oss 1 o esti estin tions. oun e in 1 D t le is e u te e in Dublin n e lo s 00 eo le oss seven o i es t e e n in n este in t e ste in t e et e l n s tl nt in t e nil in t e ili ines ins in Bel us in ition to its o i e in Beijing. ts usto e s in lu e JetBlue Delt i ines ontie i lines estJet i gin tl nti i gin ust li nte ise e vi es n e ingus. u so t e n se vi es en ble t vel et l e o ove one billion s o e s iven b so e o t e o l ’s ost innov tive i line et il b n s s s i n B og n D t le . in ill ove t e t e s t e o l ’s l gest ssenge et b 20 0. t ontinues to see ouble igit g o t tes 20 in online igit l t vel s les n is set to be o e t e o l ’s l gest e o e e et b t e en o 201 . o t e et o o tunit is signi i nt o D t le n e e o itte to ou invest ent in in to el ive t e g o t o t e o n . i in s D t le ’s i st i line usto e to be signe u in in in 2011. B og n s s t o e to s in luen e its su ess in inning t e ont t its glob l e ut tion n oven su ess © Asia

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s ell s t e is o n ’s e e ness to eng ge lo ll n lign to t e io ities o t e i in business. t i in ou o e e l t o en bles nnels su s e t inese e uiv lent to ts un n ti t e t o biggest online t vel gen ies in in n ll inese on to ess t ilo e o e s o i in B og n e l ins. u n i i ing n o otions bilit en bles i in to ive s les oss ulti le nnels i in e ent ti es s seen t i ling o il s les igu es. e e ision s e to est blis lo l esen e in Beijing l st e to su o t D t le ’s usto e s n evelo ne business. ti ul l ou o t e lib e o t e e lo ees in ou Beijing o i e. ll e inese o e e n t vel e e ts it signi i nt glob l e e ien e. e u entl ve si senio n ge s n t is ill ouble b t e en o t e e notes B og n. o e ten ou et n o u t e in in e ve lso est blis e lo l tne og e i llo s us to e ti v lue te nolog ovi e s to o it ou igit l o e e l t o . e ve l e signe lo l te nolog tne un e t is og e i is o ing ve ell. si e o in D t le s signi i nt oot int oss si n ets it its o e e l t o en bling jo i line et ile s su s ili ine i lines n l si n i lines. t lso s te nolog tne s i it b us vel ste s o ing o e ovi e o o u ts n se vi es to ove 000 t vel gen lo tions oss si ii . e ontinue to tivel evelo ne business n e e t in n si to be o e ets o t e utu e g o t o t e o n s s B og n.

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JAPAN

Working in

partnership

AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Chihiro Atsumi

JAPAN and Ireland have steadily developed a friendly and co-operative relationship. In 2013, the leaders of the two countries issued a joint declaration entitled tne s i o nnov tion n G o t ’. e e l tion e e s to: (1) the significant potential to increase trade and investment in sectors such as agri-food, financial se vi es n li e s ien es n 2 t e o otion o lose research and development collaboration in the sectors of medical evi es n te nologies n ne b se se vi es to i ove ol e eo le’s u lit o li e. e e e bout 0 is o nies oing business in J n in areas including aviation services, food and financial services, while about 70 Japanese companies are currently operating in Ireland in industries such as pharmaceuticals, financial services and aircraft leasing.

Since the joint declaration was issued, we have already started to see concrete results. For example, having lifted its longstanding ban on Irish beef, Japan has re-opened its markets to beef imports from Ireland, and collaborative research between Japan and Ireland is expanding in such fields as big data analysis and assisted independent living for older people. In these areas in particular we can look forward to a substantial increase in bilateral trade and investment and research and development collaboration in the years ahead. s esult o i e iniste in be’s oli o beno i s J n’s e ono is eboun ing e le te in t e g o t in 46 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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corporate earnings and fall in unemployment figures, for example.

As part of the Abenomics growth strategy formulated to put the economy onto a sustainable path towards recovery, steps are being taken to lower the effective corporate tax rate and develop National Strategic Special Zones, while progress is being made with ambitious regulatory and institutional reforms in sectors such as the electric power industry and agriculture.

Further growth strategy objectives include promoting the active participation of women and young people in the workforce, and creating new markets in sectors such as healthcare and energy.

Moreover, many economic partnership agreements (EPAs) are being planned with other countries and regions in order to expand two-way trade and investment. It is hoped that agreement in principle will be reached by the end of this year on the Japan-EU u entl un e negoti tion. is ill g e tl bene it bot Japan and the EU countries, including Ireland. it o ul tion o 12 illion n s t e o l ’s t i l gest e ono J n’s si e ble o esti et esents o eign companies with great opportunities. At the same time, Japan is becoming increasingly important as a gateway to the rapidly emerging Asian markets.

As a mature and developed market, foreign companies tend to view Japan as a difficult market to penetrate, but it is often said that once they succeed in Japan, foreign companies can enjoy a long-lasting relationship with local partners, based upon mutual trust.

Partnerships with Japanese companies, with their many years of experience in Asian countries, offer foreign companies the potential to broaden the scope of their business not only in Japan but throughout Asia. © Asia

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Key facts...

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ECONOMIC OVERVIEW e beno i s e ono i e o s l un e b i e iniste be’s government in 2012 are definitely having a positive impact. Since the government took office, for example, increased economic activity has boosted o nies’ o in o its to e o levels n sto i es ve isen substantially.

Additionally, the number of people in employment has increased by over one million, the ratio of job offers to jobseekers is the highest for 22 years, and salaries have risen on average by more than 2pc.

An economic virtuous cycle is truly being set in motion, in which corporate earnings increase, employment expands, wages rise and consumer spending grows – all leading to economic recovery.

Abenomics is based on three pillars aimed at overcoming deflation and revitalising the Japanese economy: (1) an aggressive monetary policy, (2) a flexible fiscal policy and (3) a growth strategy that promotes private investment. te og ess is l e being e it t e B n o J n’s onet e sing og e n t e gove n ent’s e ono i sti ulus e su es. e growth strategy is focused on bold regulatory and institutional reform in the four key areas of promoting investment, strengthening the utilisation of human resources, creating new markets and global economic integration. The required legislation passed so far is now entering the implementation stages.

The government is committed to steadily implementing the policies outlined above to ensure that the economy exits deflation, and that the benefits of beno i s s e to J n’s egion l e s. t is lso ontinuing e o ts to achieve its stated goal of economic revitalisation accompanied by fiscal consolidation.

NATIONAL FLAG

The Japanese language name for Japan is ‘Nippon’, which literally means ‘origin of the sun’. The national flag of Japan is called the ‘Hinomaru’ (‘sun circle’) and it has been used as a symbol of Japan since the 1 th century.

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NATIONAL DAY: 23 December (Emperor’s birthday)

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National population: 127.29 million (Source: Japan Statistical Yearbook 2015, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications) Top five cities and population of each: (Source: Japan Statistical Yearbook 2015): – Tokyo: 9.02 million – Yokohama: 3.71 million – Osaka: 2.67 million – Nagoya: 2.25 million – Sapporo: 1.93 million Area: 377,962 sq km (Source: Japan Statistical Yearbook 2015) Timezone: UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) + 9 Currency: yen Religion/s: Shinto, Buddhism Language/s: Japanese Bilateral trade with Ireland: €3,521m (Source: CSO 2014. Excluding services) Irish exports to Japan: €1,761m Irish imports from Japan: €1,760m GDP (nominal): US$4,898bn GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$4,667bn Real GDP growth: – 2012: 1.4pc – 2013: 1.5pc – 2014: 0.8pc (estimated) – 2015: 3pc (Asian Development Bank) GDP per capita (nominal): US$38,467 GDP per capita (PPP): US$36,653 (Source: IMF World Economic Outlook, October 2014) GDP share of world total (nominal): 6.5pc GDP sector breakdown: services 74.3pc, industry 24.5pc, agriculture 1.2pc (Source: Cabinet Office, Government of Japan)

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JAPAN

Supplying the

World from Ireland Japan’s largest pharmaceutical company Takeda has nearly a 20-year history in Ireland and Greg Timmons, president, Takeda Ireland sees a bright future for the Irish operation FOUNDED IN JAPAN in 1781, Takeda has three operations in Ireland – a formulation and finishing operation in Bray, Co Wicklow established in 1997, an active pharmaceutical ingredient operation in Grange Castle, Dublin since 2002 and a sales and marketing operation in Citywest, Dublin.

Over the past seven years, Takeda has made acquisitions worth over €20bn and transformed from a largely Japanese-managed company to a truly global organisation, according to president of Takeda Ireland Greg Timmons.

The network of the Takeda group spans over 70 countries and regions and its products are marketed in around 100 countries worldwide.

It appointed its first non-Japanese president and CEO, Christophe Weber this year, who is leading the transformation, which Timmons says is “not just a high-level corporate change, but a tangible one that we can all feel and relate to”.

“Christophe has brought the patient to the centre of our thoughts and our business. It is a great focus area that allows us to embrace compliance with regulations, knowing these patients could be our families and friends.”

Takeda is responsible for discovering and launching the largest selling medicine in Japan in recent years – a product for hypertension called Amias (known as Biopress in Ireland), in addition to being one of the largest global players in diabetes and gastroenterology.

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The Bray and Grange Castle manufacturing operations supply small molecule, solid oral dosage products to global markets.

“Takeda was attracted to Ireland for many reasons, but a huge part of the appeal was the people, skills and pro-business environment. Since we came to Ireland the country has changed in almost every way, but not in terms of these three key ingredients,” says Timmons.

Employing around 400 people currently, Takeda Ireland has supplied a number of blockbuster products to global markets, some of which have lost their patent exclusivity. It is also taking on new products and since 2012 has begun supplying the Japanese market.

“This is possibly our most unique characteristic, because the Japanese market holds the highest standards for cosmetic quality and as such is considered the most difficult market for which to manufacture,” says Timmons.

“Our success in supplying two key products to this market has led to our selection to manufacture Takecab [a treatment for acidrelated diseases] for the Japanese market this year. This product will support our growth in both Grange Castle and Bray for a number of years to come.”

Timmons believes there is a bright future for Takeda Ireland as it has secured the manufacture of such strategic products and supports its sister operations, some of which are much larger in scale.

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“Last year Takeda appointed Thomas Wozniewski as global manufacturing and supply officer. Based in Zurich, he has established a global network of manufacturing, supply and engineering professionals.

“We now have richer exchanges and more technical resources with whom to consult. And Ireland is well respected for its contribution in these exchanges as we research new technologies

JAPAN

and seek improvements to our processes.”

Both Irish manufacturing operations are set to grow in this environment, Timmons says. “Grange Castle is transitioning from a two-shift to a four-shift operation in August 2015 and Bray output is targeted to grow by 60pc within the next two years. On-going capital equipment investment will exceed €30m in our three-year plan to 2017.”

Blueface in world exclusive deal with Panasonic IRISH cloud-telephony provider Blueface secured a €900,000 deal with Panasonic in November 2014 to launch a new range of IP phones available to purchase at the end of last year.

Ireland is the first market in the world where the new Panasonic phone was made available.

The launch came after an extensive six-month research and development process from both companies, which included the Blueface team travelling to Japan.

Blueface worked with Panasonic to create a handset geared towards the SME market in order to meet growing demands n e e t tions o t e o one’ o is businesses.

The plug and play phone is designed for maximum mobility around an office, retail space or any industrial environment. The handset operates from a very small base station that plugs into a broadband router.

The exclusive partnership announced at the Web Summit in Dublin eliminates the need for wires and works over wireless digital enhanced cordless telecommunications technology, which allows any handset to work off it.

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said Hironobu Higuchi, manager of communication products, Panasonic.

Panasonic added Blueface to its European Cloud Solutions Network in 2013. As a result, Blueface now has access to the Panasonic redirect server, which means that it can order hardware to be shipped directly from Panasonic to the customer.

Founded in 2004, Blueface has be o e n soni ’s largest distributor in Ireland through its reselling of the UT range of Panasonic SIP hardware - a phone system allows Blueface to create a bespoke service for individual customers depending on their business needs.

An Taoiseach Enda Kenny with Blueface chief executive Alan Foy

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INDONESIA

Economic

reform AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. TM Hamzah Thayeb

INDONESIA has a new administration un e esi ent Jo o Jo o i’ Widodo and Vice-President Jusuf Kalla, sworn in on 20 October 2014, which has outlined economic reform priorities in order to accelerate growth over the next five years to increase job opportunities and i ove eo le’s el e.

The government committed to shift consumption to productive activities through a fuel subsidies adjustment in November 2014, giving more focus to infrastructure financing, healthcare and education, as well as human resources evelo ent. e e i tion o o u tion is lso ig on t e gen .

President Jokowi stressed the importance of good governance be o e t e st t o t e o ing binet. is ig lig ts t e ne i e tion e le ting st ong esi e to boost t e business li te. e ne inist tion’s oli ies ve ise glob l investo s’ on i en e in n onesi .

The government is also working to improve the business climate in Indonesia by circumventing and streamlining bureauies. n J nu 201 t e gove n ent est blis e one sto service centre at the office of the Investment Coordinating Board, intended to provide quick, simple, transparent and integrated li en e se vi es o invest ent n business li ensing. n onesi ’s u ent e ono i l n s e un e t e ne in ist tion o e s uge invest ent o o tunities o is businesses. o st t tot l o 0bn u ing t e ive e e io ill be investe in in st u tu e b t e gove n ent. esi ent Jo o i s e u g ing t e ount ’s o ts in st u tu e one o is io ities. s n i el gi ount o o e t n 1 000 isl n s t e maritime industry is key to the fortunes of the country and to the ontinue evelo ent o its t e el tions i s. e gove n ent is e ting e oll o ’ i it o es ill o e nise t e ount ’s o ts s ste .

The Government has prioritised spending re-allocation to 50 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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ieve g e te o u tivit . t l ns to buil o e l nts o 000 ne ess to est blis in ust i l n nu tu ing ones. n e t e n st u tu e l n 201 201 s n s 2 0 o ne o s ill be built s ell s 1 000 o ig s 2 ne se o ts se o t evelo ents 2 1 o il lines 1 0 int it il lines 1 ne i o ts n 20 i o t in st u tu e evelo ents ll o i ill o en ne t e outes n i ove onne tivit .

Apart from infrastructure, a wealth of opportunities exist for Irish business across a range of sectors, such as oil and gas, power generation, renewable energy, education, healthcare, ICT, plantation ining n so on.

Ireland has a competitive advantage in manufacturing industries such as pharmaceuticals, ICT, machinery, dairy products, as well s t ns o t in st u tu e. no le ge e e tise n te nolog in these sectors would be necessary to advance a strong manutu ing b se in n onesi .

Other key sectors include food and agri-tech, education, touris n inte n tion l in n i l se vi es. el n ’s e be s i o the EU provides Indonesian businesses with a gateway to enter uo e n ets. o o ities o n onesi su s te tiles timber, palm-oil, rubber, fish products, electronics and automotive o u ts n be ist ibute to u o e t oug is ets.

The opening of the Irish Embassy in Jakarta in 2014 underscores the great potential that exists for future trade, investment n business lin s bet een t e t o ount ies. oul vise is businesses to onsi e n onesi ’s bun dant natural resources, the size of the domestic mega-market, the young and technically trained workforce, as well as the large onsu e b se it st g o ing s en ing o e .

Indonesia is a natural choice as a hub of production and innovtion. ving l nts to ies n business ent es in n onesi ill o en bigge ets o ou business. it in e ou s flight or a few days shipping you can reach the 600 million people in the ASEAN market, and by going a little further you can reach t e ig v lue st si ets.

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ECONOMIC OVERVIEW Indonesia has a balanced economy, a big consumer market and huge infrastructure needs, and is among the major emerging markets projected by the o l B n to le t e o l ’s e ono b 202 . it GD o 1t in te s o u sing o e it n onesi is u entl t e 1 t l gest e on o in t e o l n is o e ste to be in t e to 10 it in t e ne t t o e es. o o t e o l ’s ell no n e it ting gen ies ise n onesi ’s sove eign ebt ting to invest ent g e.

Being t e l gest e ono in t e out e st si ont ibuting 0 o out e st si ’s GD n onesi s e e ien e ve ge g o t o in t e st ive e s. t still n ge to int in o e te e ono i g o t te o .02 in 201 . is s lo e t n t e . oste in t e evious e but in line it t e ent l B n oje tion o .1 . it ten en to s t e lo e nge ue to t e uel subsi just ent in ove be 201 n glob l e ono i g o t i s not s st ong s eviousl esti te . n 201 t e ent l B n e e ts t e e ono to e n in t e nge o . . . n t e su l si e t tisti s n onesi B nnoun e in eb u 201 the growth of all sectors in the economy, including agriculture, livestock, forestn is e ies .1 n ining n u ing 0. ont ting o the previous year due the slowdown in global demand, as well as the ban on ine l e o ts to o ote t e evelo ent o o esti o essing in ust . e ig est g o t e o e s in t e in o tion n o uni tion se to 10.02 . o t e e en itu e si e invest ent e o e t e ig est g o t o 12. ile o esti onsu tion g e b .1 . ont tion s elt in te s o e o t e o n e in 201 e ele ting to . ue to e e n o e e ging et ount ies n lo e o o it i es. nvest ent s be o e t e ne engine o n onesi ’s e ono i g o t it bot o esti n o eign i e t invest ent on n u t je to . nvest ent e lis tion in t e e io J nu to De e be 201 s .1t . bn n in e se o oun 1 .2 o t e s e e io in t e e vious year, according to an investment realisation report by domestic direct invest ent n D o nies. e ive le ing D se to s in 201 e e ining . bn oo .1 bn t ns o t tion e ouse n tele o uni tion bn et l ine n ele t oni in ust 2. bn n e i l n euti ls 2. 2bn .

NATIONAL FLAG The design of the Merah Putih, or red and white, national flag of Indonesia, is two equal horizontal bands, red on top and white at the bottom. The red stands for courage and represents the human body, while the white stands for purity and represents the human soul. Together it stands for a complete human being, one that is pure and courageous.

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NATIONAL DAY: 17 AUGUST (INDEPENDENCE DAY) DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN INDONESIA AND IRELAND: 4 SEPTEMBER 1984

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Key facts...

National population: 252,164,800 (2014) Top five cities and population of each: – Jakarta (capital): 9.6 million – Surabaya: 2.76 million – Bandung: 2.39 million – Bekasi: 2.33 million – Medan: 2.09 million ■ Area: 1,904,569 sq km ■ Timezone: GMT + 7 ■ Currency: Rupiah ■ Religion/s: Islam, Christian, Roman Catholic, Hindu, Buddha, Confucianism ■ Language/s: Bahasa Indonesia (national language) ■ Bilateral trade with Ireland (2014): US$171,79m ■ Irish exports to Indonesia: US$100,94m ■ Gross domestic product (GDP): US$ 867.5bn (2013) ■ GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$ 1.285tr (2013) ■ Real GDP growth: 6.2pc (2012); 5.8pc (2013); 5.01pc (2014) ■ GDP per capita (current prices): US$3,475 (2013) ■ GDP per capita (PPP): US$9,561 (2013) ■ GDP share of world total: 1.4pc (2013) ■ GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 13.38pc, manufacturing industry 21.02pc, and wholesale and retail trade 13.38pc (2014) Sources: Ministry of Trade, Bank Indonesia, Statistics Indonesia (BPS), World Bank ■ ■

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INDONESIA

AGRICULTURE AND EDUCATION The Indonesian agriculture sector remains an indispensable part o t e ount ’s e ono i st u tu e 1 . o n onesi ’s tot l GD in 201 s o t e g i ultu e se to s e su e in u ent i es si il to 1 . t e evious e o ing to t e t o t tisti s n onesi B . oo o s e in b t e l gest ont ibuto to t e se to ounting o o e t n l o t e in ust ’s v lue. o eve n onesi ’s g o ing o ul tion ill e ui e ontinue e nsion o t e oo o se to to ee e. esi ent Jo o i s outline l ns to ieve oo se u it o n onesi t oug t e n tion l oo sel su i ien t get i t e gove n ent i s to ieve in t e ne t t ee e s. e l ns in lu e i e nge o e su es to boost o u tivit n out ut in lu ing e n ing oo o u tion e s li iting t e onve sion o e isting o l n o ot e u oses n in e sing iel s in t ese e s. nvest ent in v lue e nu tu ing su s l nt tion l oil ubbe o o n g i oo ontinues to be t e se to t t oul offer the best opportunities for Irish businesses both in the short and long te s. e gove n ent s issue seve l in entives in t e o o t llo n es t oli s n i o t ut e e tion to in e se iv te involve ent in o u tion n invest ent in t e l nt tion se to . e e is e initel otenti l to o o e in t ese e s.

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e n onesi n e u tion l s ste is st g o ing n ell un e . o ing to t e o l B n n onesi s 0 illion stu ents 2. illion te e s n 2 0 000 s ools. ts e u tion l s ste in te s o s le is o in t e egion n o in t e o l belo n i in n t e . Bot ent l n lo l ut o ities e e ui e to s en t le st 20 o t ei bu gets on e u tion. esi ent Jo o i’s nine io ities gen lle t e it ’ in lu es signi i ntl i oving t e u lit o e u tion so s to i ove n en n e n onesi ’s u n it l su o ting e ono i g o t . e o t e uel subsi just ent in ove be 201 t e gove n ent e llo te s en ing o e u tion subsi ies t geting t e oo n ilies ne t e ove t t es ol in t e o o t e n onesi n t tu n onesi int . el n ’s o etitive v nt ge in t e e u tion se to n l le ing ole in ont ibuting to t e evelo ent o t e se to in n onesi . el n n n onesi ve o ene is ussions o e o n u o un e st n ing in t e iel o e u tion t t ill ili t te o e n onesi n stu ents to stu in el n . n ot e e s su s t ns o t Dublin i o t ut o it is tive in ovi ing t ining n ssist n e in n onesi .

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INDONESIA

The Irish and Indonesian economies are complementary, according to Irish Ambassador to Indonesia Kyle O’Sullivan The Embassy of Ireland in Jakarta opened late last year with two Irish-based staff. Since arriving in Jakarta, the question put to them b is n n onesi n eo le li e s not been i ou o en n e b ss ’ but t e t too ou so long to get e e ’. n onesi ’s s le its o le it n its otenti l e ll o e ul arguments for an Irish presence on the ground.

Jakarta, in particular, is a huge bustling metropolis, combining the most modern with the most traditional elements in a city of 12 million people – with all the challenges and benefits that this implies.

Indonesia is not a traditional partner for Ireland and in many cases t e e ono i ties ust be st te o s t it t e e es i e on the potential not the actual.

The Irish and Indonesian economies are complementary and if we can make the right connections, the opportunities for mutually beneficial business are significant.

Some sectors are immediately apparent: ICT and software, food and food ingredients, medical equipment, aviation services, and

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specialised construction. Education and tourism will also be important. And beyond these are the sectors, markets and niches which are not immediately obvious, but where there is an opportunity for Irish companies to compete and win business because they provide the best product, service and value. e eo nge in n onesi ’s e ono is stoun ing it growth rates here dwarfing those of Europe and projected to continue growing strongly into the future.

Demographic, consumer and commercial trends all indicate enormous potential. Indonesia will not be a familiar environment to most Irish companies, and doing business here involves a step change from working with our traditional markets.

But t is o le it is bot llenge n n o o tunit . is o nies ve t e le ibilit t e s ills n t e ive to su ee in this market, and the embassy and the state agencies have an unambiguous mandate to do all we can to support them.

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INDIA

A new

age AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Radhika Lal Lokesh

INDIA is the largest democracy, second most populous nation with more than a billion people and among the fastest growing economies in the world.

For companies with any kind of global interest, the writing on the wall is very clear – they should have a strategy for India. The mileage to get to India may be great but once you are there, there are plenty of opportunities as many Irish companies have discovered.

India is entering a new age of development that beckons. Irish industry and trade should take advantage of the huge consumer market but remember that it is also a very competitive market with several international players. e tne in el n ’s et g o t st teg n i ’s st engt es us n tu l tne s in t e t ee s’ in o tion technology, bio-technology and environment technology.

There is great potential for India and Ireland to work together on ICT solutions in the health, agriculture and environment sectors.

In addition, there is interest in taking the co-operation in areas such as aviation and related technologies, engineering and construction, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, and food and beverages to the next level.

In the services sector, Irish businesses can tap into India as one of the fastest growing tourist generating markets in the world.

For the past few years, Indian businesses have been attracted to the financial and banking sectors, pharmaceuticals and engineering sectors in Ireland. Indian IT and pharmaceutical companies continue to look at Ireland as an attractive and strategic gateway to expand into continental Europe.

As an investment and trade destination, Ireland offers opportunities in ICT, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, biotechnology and bio-medical engineering. In addition, the trade in textiles and garments, leather goods, household furnishings and so on also holds great promise.

Agriculture is an important sector for both India and Ireland. It 54 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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is one of the largest employers in India and largest indigenous in ust in el n . el n ’s e o ts to n i e st ong n sl te to grow.

Kerrygold cheese and butter products were launched in India l st e i lso s t e l un o t e i st Butle ’s o ol te Café. Kerry Ingredients India is also well established as a leading supplier of coating systems, snack seasoning and functional ing e ients. B ile ’s is e n J eson is e e famous brands in India.

In addition, the thoroughbred industry in Ireland is attracting Indian breeders for developing their broodmare brands and stallions.

Ireland also has an established reputation in research and development in agriculture, food and marine products and there is much benefit to be earned from co-operation in this area at a time when India is looking for new technologies to increase soil fertility, produce more crops per drop and bring the latest technology from lab to land. On the output side, there is also scope for cooperation in the entire value chain in agriculture including storage and food processing. u ning to e u tion t e n i n Gove n ent’s oli ies o us on t e t ee s’ e uit e ellen e n e nsion. o ieve t ese go ls n i is o ening its oo s to u lit o eign e u tion providers.

The co-operation between universities in India and Ireland has seen many successes, including student exchanges, faculty exchanges and joint research projects. Our future efforts can o us on o o e tion on evelo ing ill n i ’ i ill harness the demographic dividend that everyone talks about.

Both Indian and Irish people attach great importance to family values. Therefore, you would generally find Indians to be polite, courteous, friendly, hospitable and respectful towards elders and t ose in ut o it . e n initi ll be uite o l.

Developing personal rapport, understanding and trust in any relationship is extremely important. With Indians, it could take some time, but once established, they would be ready to go to extra mile in a negotiation. Hence, a patient approach with a vision for long-term engagement has a greater chance of success. © Asia

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INDIA

Key facts...

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW Political stability in India achieved after elections in May 2014 in which the current Gove n ent o i e iniste o i got n bsolute jo it s ise in ust ’s expectations for the economy.

Since coming into office, Government policy is geared to achieve growth which is sustainable and inclusive. ee sis on e in n i ’ Digit l n i ’ n ill n i ’ is ent l to reshaping economy and society, reforming Government systems, increasing efficiency and creating a better environment for much needed investment.

In addition to peace and prosperity within the country, a peaceful international envi on ent is e e uisite o n e e ging e ono su s n i ’s.

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NATIONAL FLAG The National flag of India (affectionately called ‘Tiranga’ meaning ‘tricolour’) has three e ual hori ontal bands the top panel is India saffron (Kesari), the bottom panel is India green and the white middle band bears at its centre the Wheel of Law or Dharma Cha ra in na y blue colour with 2 e ually spaced spo es. It was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 22 July 19 7. Saffron stands for courage and sacrifice, white symbolises truth, peace and purity and green represents prosperity, ibrancy and life. The Wheel of Law or Dharma Cha ra appears on the abacus of the Sarnath Lion, Capital of Emperor of Asho a.

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NATIONAL DAY: 2 January (Republic Day) 15 August (Independence Day)

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DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN INDIA AND IRELAND: formal diplomatic lin s were established in 19 7, India opened its embassy in Dublin in 1951 and the Irish embassy in New Delhi was set up in 19

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National population: 1.25 billion Top five cities – Mumbai : 20.8 million – Delhi : 21.8 million – Kolkata: 14.6 million – Bangalore : 8.7 million – Hyderabad : 7.7 million Area: 3,287,590 sq km Currency: Indian rupee Religions: Hinduism, Muslim, Christian, Sikhism, Buddhism,Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism etc Language/s: 22 languages listed in eighth Schedule of the Constitution, Hindi and English are official languages Bilateral trade with Ireland in 2013: €667m Irish exports to India (2013): €281m Irish imports from India (2013): € 386m GDP nominal (2014): US$2076bn GDP (purchase power parity (PPP)) (2013): US$6776bn Real GDP growth (2014): 6pc GDP predicted growth (2015): 6.6pc GDP nominal per capita (2013): US$1,499 GDP nominal sector breakdown (2013): agriculture 17.4pc, industry 25.8pc, services 56.9pc GDP share of world total at purchase power parity (2013): 6.6pc

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INDIA

GLOBAL

LEADER Tata Group employs over 581,000 people worldwide, with 67.2pc of this coming from businesses outside India INDIAN-HEADQUARTERED global organisation the Tata Group completely changed its entire business model over a 10-year period, moving from the bottom of the consulting food chain all the way up to the top.

Tata Sons was founded in 1868 in India by Jamsetji Tata.

He was the son of the first businessman in what was otherwise a family of Zoroastrian Parsi priests who had the vision of establishing a company that would exist to finance and initiate projects to improve the lives of the people of India.

Today the Tata Group employs over 581,000 people worldwide, and earned annual revenues of over US$103bn in 2013–2014, with 67.2pc of this coming from businesses outside India.

Consisting of more than 130 companies, 32 of which are traded on stock exchanges, 65pc of Tata is owned by philanthropic trusts and Tata is one of the biggest charities in the world.

Many Tata companies have achieved global leadership in their businesses. o inst n e t o uni tions is t e o l ’s largest wholesale voice carrier and Tata Motors is among the top five commercial vehicle manufacturers in the world.

Tata Steel is among the top 10 best steelmakers and TCS is amongst the top 10 global IT services companies. Tata Global Beverages is the second-largest player in tea in the world and t e i ls is t e o l ’s se on l gest nu tu e o soda ash.

In tandem with the increasing international footprint of

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Tata companies, the Tata brand is also gaining international recognition.

With its pioneering and entrepreneurial spirit, the Tata group has spawned several industries of national importance in India: steel, hydro-power, hospitality and airlines.

Irish entrepreneur and founder of executive search company Claddagh Resources Peter Casey was so enamoured with what the Tata Group has achieved and its philanthropic ethos that e ote boo bout it e o l ’s G e test o n s published in 2014.

With an office in Dublin, Tata is considering setting up a centre of excellence in Ireland focused on Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs), of which Casey is a passionate advocate.

“MOOCs are like the Wikipedia for education and will do for education accessibility what iTunes did for music. There is currently a five-year gap between what businesses need and universities deliver. Pioneered in Ireland, MOOCs are rapidly gaining popularity in the US and cover a massive range of topics that immediately address current urgent business needs, such as the latest in predictive analytics,” he says.

Casey personally invited all the heads of universities in Ireland to an event in the Shelbourne, Dublin in October 2014 to allow the current Tata CEO Natarajan Chandrasekaran to present his vision for MOOCs here.

“I believe this is an unmissable opportunity for Ireland to lead the world in online learning,” Casey contends.

© Asia

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KOREA

New ground AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Park, Hae-yun

With its huge consumer market, business friendly environment and world-class industries, Korea is n i o t nt tne in el n ’s growth strategy.

In particular, the landmark Korea-EU free trade agreement (FTA), entered into force in 2011, has created a unique fertile ground for trade and investment.

During the Korea-Ireland Joint Economic Commission held on 4 December 2014, both sides found wide business potential in ICT, life sciences, education and financial services to name just a few.

Recent years have seen new ground broken in many areas. In 2014, Korea-Ireland trade reached a five-year record high. High level bilateral interaction also continued to strengthen with Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton making the first Irish trade mission to Korea.

Propelled by the Korea-Ireland memorandum of understanding on Education signed in 2013, co-operation and exchanges in the education sector are growing by leaps and bounds.

More than 2,400 Korean students visit Ireland annually to study and at least 18 institutions are collaborating on cuttingedge research. The ongoing outreach efforts by the likes of the Irish Institute of Korean Studies in University College Cork and countless others will surely broaden and deepen these links.

Organisations such as the Korea Foundation and the Academy 58 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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of Korean Studies from Korea are working closely with Irish partners to that end.

In addition, Korea is an important destination for Irish exports of medical and pharmaceutical products and internationally traded services such as aviation and financial services. Korea has also emerged as the fastest growing market for Irish seafood.

Given the shared emphasis on openness, innovation and business-friendly environments, there is still further potential to be tapped. We welcome Irish businesses to use Korea as a gateway to Asia. Likewise, we invite Korean businesses to use Ireland as a hub for European operations. It is evident the two countries are formidable partners for global business.

Automobile, ICT, display, semiconductor and shipping are just some of the industries where Korea has established a global presence.

With the launch of the Creative Economy initiative by President Park Geun-hye in 2013, Korea is looking to forge partnerships with innovative businesses around the world. n t t s e t el n ’s o tive v nt ge in li e sciences, financial and business services creates a strong platform for further business opportunities for both countries.

In addition to Hyundai, Samsung, LG, POSCO and other Korean conglomerates that occupy the headlines around the world, there are a number of small and medium-sized companies, accounting for 88pc of the employment in Korea, with key technology or niche know-how that can be invaluable partners for Irish businesses. © Asia

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KOREA

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW Home to global companies such as Samsung and Hyundai, Korea is the 13th largest economy in the world and ranks eighth worldwide in trading volume.

A resilient economy, Korea has weathered the global recession and its GDP is estimated to have grown by 3.3pc in 2014. Its current growth strategy comprises expansionary fiscal policy and timely structural reforms, which have been viewed favourably by the IMF and OECD. Korea also launched the Creative Economy initiative in 2013, strengthening innovation and research and development (R&D). In 2014, it ranked first among OECD countries in terms of R&D intensity and first in the world in the Bloomberg innovation ranking.

Buttressing the innovation is a business friendly environment which ranked fifth in t e ol o ing to t e o l B n ’s se o Doing Business n e .

The only Asian country to have established free trade agreements (FTAs) with both the EU and the US, Korea has an ever expanding FTA network, which in 2014 added China to the fold. In particular, the Korea-EU FTA took effect in 2011, offering greater mutual access for businesses on both sides.

For Irish businesses, this access leads to the Korean consumer market, comprising 50 million strong population and one of the highest purchasing powers in Asia.

Moreover, Korea represents a gateway to the greater Asian market, with its strategic geographic location and savvy consumers known as trendsetters in the region.

NATIONAL FLAG Called Taegeukgi, the Korean flag has its roots in traditional Korean philosophy on the origin of the universe. In the centre, blue and red halfcircles, symbolising the cosmic forces of ‘yin’ and ‘yang’ respecti ely, are joined together to form a whole circle, a reference to the principle that the universe evolves from the fluid interaction and harmony between two contrasting forces. The four trigrams surrounding the circle embody the four universal elements: heaven, earth, fire and water.

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NATIONAL DAY: 3 October DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN KOREA AND IRELAND: 4 October 1983

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Key facts...

National population: 50 million Top five cities – Seoul: 10.4 million – Busan: 3.6 million – Incheon: 2.8 million – Daegu: 2.5 million – Daejeon: 1.5 million ■ Area: 100,460 sq km ■ Currency: won ■ Timezone: GMT + 9 hours ■ Religions Buddhism (24pc); Protestantism (23pc); Catholicism (8pc); other (0.8pc); no religion 44.2pc ■ Language: Korean ■ Bilateral trade with Ireland in 2014: – Korean exports to Ireland: US$463m – Irish exports to Korea: US$833m – Irish exports to Korea: US$935m – Total volume of trade: US$1.4bn ■ Gross domestic product (GDP) in 2014: – GDP (PPP): US$1.7898tr (13th largest in the world) – GDP per person: US$28,739 ■ Real GDP growth (Bank of Korea): 3.7pc ( 2011), 2.3pc (2012), 3pc (2013), 3.3pc (2014), 3.8pc (2015) ■ GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 2.7pc, industry: 39.8pc, services 57.5pc ■ R&D intensity: first among OECD countries ■ Trading volume: US$1.988tr (eighth largest in the world, 2014) ■ ■

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KOREA

Science of life Dianne Rhee, director Korea at Enterprise Ireland, shares her insights into areas of most potential for Irish companies in the world’s 13th largest market is a high potential sector and construction engineering services is a relatively new, but rapidly growing, sector for Irish exporters in Korea, according to Dianne Rhee, director Korea at Enterprise Ireland.

“Key export sectors for Irish companies have traditionally been food and drink followed by financial services, software, aviation services and g i te enginee ing s e e l ine “Life sciences recorded 100pc growth in 2011 for Irish companies even though it contracted slightly in 2012. Market trends still show g o t otenti l o t e utu e it sub se to s su s euti l services, medical devices and diagnostics as well as animal nutrition and vete in euti ls being o ti ul inte est.

Rhee also highlighted education as an area offering significant untapped potential for Ireland in Korea: “The total number of Koreans studying abroad [over 20 years of age] was 239,210 spending a total of US$3.4bn in 2012, with 57pc going to English speaking countries. The number of Korean students going to Ireland was 611 in 2012 and market s e is just 0.2 o e to .2 in t e .

Total Irish exports to Korea amounted to €590m in 2013 and there are

200 Irish companies selling into the market, according to an Enterprise el n e o t ublis e in 201 entitle ess out o e ’.

Over the next five years, the South Korean economy is set to make t e 10t l gest ont ibution to o l g o t t t’s s u st e and more than France or Italy, the Enterprise Ireland report notes.

The country has a population of 50 million and is highly urbanised, with over 50pc living in the Greater Seoul metropolitan area, and has one o t e o l ’s ig est tes o inte net n obile tele on use.

With an office in Seoul since 2004, Enterprise Ireland recently expanded its presence in the Korean market, according to Rhee.

“Export growth by Enterprise Ireland clients to Korea was estimated t1 in 201 n g o t in 201 is e e te to be t si il te exports by client companies are targeted to grow to €70m by 2015 and to over €83m by 2016.

“There are 170 Enterprise Ireland clients exporting to Korea, most of which are starting out and operating through local partners and importer distributors. Fourteen of them have established a physical presence/ o i e on t e g oun .

DUBLIN’S PIXCELLDATA IN NEW PARTNERSHIP WITH SEONGKOHN TRADERS IN KOREA IRISH SOFTWARE company Pixcelldata has entered into a new partnership with SeongKohn Traders, which is the top provider of automated instruments and consumables for cytology, histology and autopsy and forensic laboratories in Korea.

The deal signed in November 2014 will involve t e o n eting i ell t ’s ollibio software – an advanced web application for storing, managing, reviewing, and sharing digital pathology images and associated case data. ollibio ill be use to e e o i ien tests and slide conferences for the Korean Society of Pathologists, the Korean Society for to t ologists n t ei sub stu g ou s n

60 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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regional meetings, as well as for veterinary and toxicology pathologists.

“As well as having a unique understanding of the needs of Korean pathology laboratories, SeongKohn Traders also has extensive experience n in e t no le ge o igit l t olog s i l n nle o i ell t . ei no o n e e tise ou le it ou innov tive ollibio solution is t e e e t combination. We will work together to expand our esen e in t e o e n igit l t olog et.

Founded in 2010 in Dublin, Pixcelldata is an innovator of software solutions for the digital pathology domain.

© Asia

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THE PHILIPPINES

Resurgent

economy AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Enrique A Manalo

IRELAND and the Philippines share values in many aspects of life such as work, family and community, as well as a common dominant faith.

Now is a good time for Irish firms to consider establishing operations in Philippine economic zones as a springboard for the massive export market in Asia, most particularly the ASEAN, which will be a single economic community by the end of 2015.

The Philippines is an ideal location to establish offshore operations, as well as manufacturing operations for export into the ASEAN community due to its many comparative advantages, including the young, dynamic, productive labour force with a high level of education and its use of the English language as the business medium.

Otherwise, Irish firms have tremendous opportuntities in the following sectors in the Philippines: information technology/ business process management (IT/BPM), particularly in the field of financial and accounting services, software and mobile application development; knowledge process outsourcing, particularly in the areas of engineering, architectural design and other creative services; renewable energy; manufacturing in agribusiness and food processing; aerospace, including maintenance,

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repair and overhaul; and public-private partnerships, infrastructure projects, wearables and apparel sourcing.

The Philippines remains one of the largest export markets for food products from Ireland. On our part, we recommended the opening of the Irish market to more Philippine products such as fresh fruits and vegetables, processed foods, and organics.

The other sectors that offer the most opportunity to Philippine businesses in Ireland are electronics, information technology, tourism, renewable energy, and garments and wearables.

The Philippines government has increased the education se to ’s bu get b l ost 20 o 201 to o e ensivel cover, among others, infrastructure and facilities, instructional materials, and modernisation programmes.

The country produces around 700,000 college and university graduates a year, providing many opportunities in technical, training and post-graduate co-operation.

The factors that will have most effect on the Philippine economy in 201 e eb l n ing’ o t e e ono to e u e vulne bilit to regional/global shocks and generate more and higher quality jobs; infrastructure spending growth; the focus on improving health, education and disaster risk reduction services; US economic recovery; the hosting of APEC; the implementation of ASEAN economic integration at the end of 2015; decline of global oil prices; recent credit rating upgrades; and the passage of key legislation.

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THE PHILIPPINES

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW The resurgent Philippine economy has continued to go from strength to strength. It grew by 6.9pc in the last quarter of 2014, pushing average full e g o t to .1 e ent n int ining t e ount ’s ig g o t trajectory.

The Philippine economy posted the highest growth in Southeast Asia and remained second only to China in Asia for the period. The latest u te o e nsion e t e ili ines’ t onse utive u te o uninterrupted growth overall. n to s ve been ite o t e ili ine e ono ’s obust performance: dynamic business and private sector activity, sound fiscal management, solid economic fundamentals, and a stable political environment.

The sustained growth figures are likewise attributed to improved governance under the administration of President Benigno Aquino III, whose economic policies have set forth a programme of institutional reforms, the passage of landmark laws, promotion of transparency and accountability, and support for broad-based growth. tings gen ies it t n oo ’s n oo ’s li e ise e ognise t e ount ’s st engt s n ll u g e t e ili ines to investment grade status in 2013.

Reflecting such improved governance and dynamism, the Philippines has over the past four years significantly climbed and been one of the o l ’s best e o e s in glob l o etitiveness n ings in lu ing World Bank – IFC Ease of Doing Business Report (+53); World Economic o u ’s Glob l o etitiveness e o t n t e e it ge oun tion’s ono i ee o n e .

The Philippines is better positioned and has avoided the pitfalls of other economies, making itself structurally stronger, better prepared and more resilient against market volatility and external shocks.

Key facts...

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NATIONAL FLAG The sun represents independence, and its eight rays represent the first eight provinces that revolted against Spanish colonial rule. The three stars represent the country’s three main geographic regions: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The white triangle represents e uality. The blue field represents patriotism and the red field valour.

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NATIONAL DAY: 12 June (Independence Day)

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DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED WITH IRELAND: 9 July 1946

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National population: 97.35 million (2013 projection) Top five cities by population: – Quezon City: 2.76 million – City of Manila: 1.65 million – Caloocan City: 1.49 million – Davao City: 1.45 million – Cebu City: 866,000 Area: approximately 300,000 sq km Timezone: GMT + 8 hours Currency: Philippine peso Religions: Roman Catholic (82.9pc), Protestant (5.4pc), Islam (4.6pc), Philippine Independent Church (2.6pc), Iglesia ni Cristo (2.3pc) Languages: two official languages: Filipino and English. Filipino, which is based on Tagalog, is the national language. English is also widely used and is the medium of instruction in education. There are eight major dialects spoken by majority of the Filipinos: Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinense.

Bilateral trade with Ireland: US$375,880,000 (2012) Irish exports to the Philippines: US$347,280,000 (2012) Philippine exports to Ireland: US$28,600,000 (2012) GDP: US$292.2bn (2014 estimate) GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP): US$493bn (2014 estimate) Real GDP growth: 7.6pc (2010), 3.9pc (2011), 6.8pc (2012), 7.2pc (2013), 6.1pc (2014) 7–8pc (2015 and 2016 projected) GDP per capita (current prices): US$2,765 (2013) GDP per capita (PPP): US$4,700 (2013) GDP share of world total: 0.53pc (2013) GDP sector breakdown: services 57pc, industry 32pc, agriculture 11pc

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THE PHILIPPINES

Banking on

development Manila-based Asian Development Bank has released a report that bodes well for developing Asia from an economic perspective DEVELOPING ASIA will maintain its strong economic growth in 2015 and 2016 supported by soft commodity prices and recovery in the major industrial economies, according to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report released in March.

Based in Manila in the Philippines, the ADB is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration.

Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 of which are from the region.

DB’s l gs i nnu l e ono i ubli tion si n Development Outlook 2015 (ADO), forecasts developing Asia will achieve GDP growth of 6.3pc in both 2015 and 2016. The region grew 6.3pc in 2014.

“Developing Asia is making a strong contribution to global economic growth,” said ADB chief economist Shang-Jin Wei. “Falling commodity prices are creating space for policy-makers across the region to cut costly fuel subsidies or initiate other structural reforms. This is a key opportunity to build frameworks that will support more inclusive and sustainable growth in the longer term.”

From the trough of the global financial crisis in 2009, developing Asia has contributed 2.3 percentage points to global GDP growth ne l 0 o t e o l ’s nnu l e.

Eight economies in the region posted growth exceeding 7pc in ne l eve e o t e ost isis e io in lu ing t e eo le’s e ubli o in t e o eo le’s De o ti e ubli

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and Sri Lanka. it i oving e te n l e n o t e egion’s out uts n expected pick-up in India and in most members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, could help balance gradual e ele tion in t e t e egion’s l gest e ono o ing to the ADO. India is forecast to overtake the PRC in terms of growth as the initial phase of government efforts to remove structural bottlenecks is lifting investor confidence, the ADB notes.

Across the sub-regions, economic growth in East Asia will slow to 6.5pc in 2015 and 6.3pc in 2016 reflecting the moderation in the PRC. The sub-region grew 6.6pc in 2014. Mongolia will see growth decelerate sharply in 2015 as foreign direct investment dries up and fiscal and monetary policies are tightened.

Growth in South Asia accelerated to 6.9pc in 2014 and is projected to trend higher to 7.2pc in 2015 and 7.6pc in 2016, reflecting the strong performance anticipated in India.

Both Bangladesh and Pakistan are following through with wideranging economic reforms that include efforts to overcome power shortages, though political challenges may limit progress in 2015.

Following a sub-regional drop of 4.4pc in 2014, Southeast Asia is poised for a growth rebound in 2015, the ADO (Asian Development Outlook) predicts.

Aggregate growth is seen rebounding to 4.9pc in 2015 and 5.3pc in 2016 as recovery in Indonesia and Thailand leads the way, and with most of the sub-region expected to benefit from rising exports and lower inflation.

© Asia

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SINGAPORE

Facing outward AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Foo Chi Hsia

SINGAPORE and Ireland are the o igin l tige s’ o ou es e tive egions. e e bot s ll n out loo ing. is o nies in it n e s n ili envi on ent to on u t business in ing o e. Just s el n se ves s g te to t e i e uo e n et n o nies use ing o e s l un into si et e it’s to out e st si o t e st si o out si . ing o e is one o t e o e signi i nt sou es o invest ents into n o t ese ount ies. e e elig te to ost o e t n 2 0 is o nies in lu ing oo onglo e te e e i l te nolog o n ovi ien n buil ing te i ls nu tu e i ve olle tivel investe oet n . bn in ing o e. ing o e se ves s t ei g te to ess t e si n et n t e business ub to n ge t ei egion l o e tions. ei se to s nge o in n i l se vi es bio e i l s ien es n in o tion te nolog to oo n g i ultu e. lt oug ing o e is not l ge o esti et in igenous o nies in t e oo nu tu ing n se vi es se to oul be een to o it is o nies to o evelo ne oo 66 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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on e ts n te nologies to te to t e g o ing ets in si . n ition t e onsu e business n enginee ing se vi es in ust ies o e st ong o o tunities o is businesses. e e e lso o o tunities o ing o e ente ises to t into el n ’s st engt s in in o tion te nolog e o e e n in n i l se vi es to ess t e u o e n ets. n ition t e e oul be s ne gies in t e s ien e enginee ing e i l te nolog e lt e n ot e te nolog el te se to s. e ve on lu e negoti tions o t e ing o e ee t e g ee ent. e loo o to its o t ti i tion i oul o en n ne o o tunities o bot is n ing o e n o nies. e eleb te t e 0t nnive s o bil te l el tions in 201 lt oug ou isto i l lin s go b t o entu ies. ing o e n is eo le in it e s to el te to e ot e s bot ou eo le love goo estiv l Due to ou ulti ultu l e u t e e is n bun n e o estiv ls t t e eleb te in ing o e. oget e it t e 2 000 st ong is o unit e e ing o e osts t e l gest t t i ’s D e in out e st si tten e b ove 20 000 eo le.

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SINGAPORE

Key facts...

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW Singapore has an advantageous geographical location in the heart of Asia, with excellent global connectivity and pro-business policies. It has been consistently ranked by the World Economic Forum (WEF) as one of the easiest places to conduct business.

It is a highly open economy, with external trade amounting to three times the ount ’s GD . t s ig l t ine o o e n ive si ie e ono i st u tu e.

Together with strong macroeconomic fundamentals such as consistent budget su luses ing o e’s e ono is obust n esilient n g e b 2. in 201 . ing o e’s e tensive ee t e g ee ents lso ovi e o nies it strong market connectivity. Singapore is well placed as the strategic gateway for international companies to access the burgeoning Asian market.

NATIONAL FLAG

It consists of two equal horizontal sections of red above white. The upper left section contains a white crescent moon and five white stars, which form a circle. Red symbolises universal brotherhood and the equality of man, while white signifies pervading and everlasting purity and virtue. The crescent moon represents a rising young nation. The five stars stand for the nation’s ideals of democracy, peace, progress, ustice and e uality.

NATIONAL DAY: 9 August DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN SINGAPORE AND IRELAND: 2 De e be 1

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National population: 5.47 million Area: 716.1 sq km Time zone: UTC + 8 Currency: Singapore dollar Religion/s: Buddhism (33.9pc), Islam (14.3pc), Taoism (11.3pc), Christianity (11pc), Catholicism (7.1pc), Hinduism (5.2pc), other religions (0.7pc), none (16.4pc) Language/s: English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil are the four official languages in Singapore Bilateral trade with Ireland: USD$1,263.9m Irish exports to Singapore: USD$840.3m Singapore exports to Ireland: USS$420.7m Gross domestic product (GDP, current market prices): USD$295.6bn Real GDP growth: 6pc (2011), 1.9pc (2012), 4.1pc (2013), 2.9pc (2014), 2–4pc (2015 estimate) GDP per capita (current prices): USD$54,000 GDP per capita (purchasing power parity): USD$55,200 GDP share of world total: 0.388pc GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 0.0pc, industry 29.4pc and services 70.6pc

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SINGAPORE

TALENT

POOL A report last year found that Singapore succeeds in attracting top quality talent from across the world, aided by its cosmopolitan culture and effective immigration policies Singapore ranks second in the Global Talent Competitiveness n e G 201 i e su es n tion’s o etitiveness based on the quality of talent it can produce, attract and retain.

Launched in Singapore last January, the study was produced by international business school Insead in collaboration with the Human Capital Leadership Institute of Singapore (HCLI) and Swiss human resources consulting firm Adecco Group.

The index placed Switzerland at No 1, followed by Singapore and Luxembourg in second and third places respectively.

As in 2013, the GTCI rankings are dominated by European countries, with only six non-European countries in the top 20: Singapore (2), the US (4), Canada (5), Australia (9), New Zealand (16) and Japan (20). e 201 e o t o uses on t e t e e o g o ing t lent o to n to o o ’.

Executive director of global indices at Insead and co-author of the report Bruno Lanvin comments: “Singapore succeeds in attracting top quality talent from across the world, aided by its cosmopolitan culture as well as effective immigration policies.

Singapore, along with Australia and Malaysia, have a regulatory environment that promotes competition, doing business and innovation.

“But even by its own high standards, Singapore struggles to grow its vocational and its global leadership talent to meet the

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needs of the medium and high skilled sectors of the economy.”

According to Ilian Mihov, dean of Insead, we live in a world where talent has become the core currency of competitiveness – for businesses and national economies alike. Yet there is an all too frequent mismatch between the needs of enterprises and the talents fostered by policies and education systems.

“This mismatch is brought sharply into focus in a region such as Asia, with marked variations in the quality of its institutions as well as the size, type, and stage and pace of development of its economies,” he says.

“A consequence of being home to some of the fastest growing economies in the world is that the region is also undergoing sweeping changes at an unprecedented pace, which comes with its own set of challenges.”

Kwan Chee Wei, CEO of the Human Capital Leadership Institute (HCLI), notes that the traditional hierarchies and bureaucracy in many Asian corporates often hold back openness, transparency and empowerment – important levers in accelerating talent growth.

“In certain Asian countries, there is a need to see value and worth in both professional and technical vocations. Beyond this, Asia has to build Asian global leaders rather than relying solely on expatriates to lead in the region.”

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ASEF

Thanks to his extensive experience of working in both Europe and Asia, Conor O’Clery was selected to represent Ireland on the board of the Asia-Europe Foundation

The Irish governor FORMER is i es o eign o es on ent ono ’ le be e t e is e esent tive on t e bo o gove no s o t e si u o e oun tion l st e e le ting t e es o t e is Gove n ent is t ing to e be s i o t e o g nis tion. ’ le o e o e is i es o ove 0 e s in v ious ositions in lu ing o eign o es on ent b se in on on os o s ington D Beijing n e o it . e s on nu be o s in lu ing in 2002 o e o ting t e 11 tt s on t e o l e ente in e o i e itnesse o is o i e t ee blo s . st blis e in 1 to o ote g e te utu l un e st n ing bet een si n u o e t oug intelle tu l ultu l n eo le to eo le e nges no s 0 e be ount ies. uite o ten o t e e be ount ies t ei b ss o s in ing o e ten to be ointe s gove no s. e is Gove n ent e i e it oul li e to ve so eone on t e bo o ig t b ing bit o e e ge to t e is ussion oun t e bo oo t ble ’ le s s. ve e tensive e e ien e o e o ting o si n u o e n s b se in in o ive e s bet een 1 n 2001.

Du ing t t ti e igne o g e te is esen e in si o e le b ig lig ting t t t e e b ss in in s g ossl un e st e o e to ot e e b ssies in si il e ono ies su s e e l n . ve bit o t e o it t e De t ent o o eign i s o ising su issues n so s s e b t e e t ent to be o e n gove no n se ve o t ee e s on t e bo . ve t e st 1 e s s i le ente ove 0 oje ts b inging toget e o e t n 1 000 i e t ti i nts n e ing out to n even i e u ien e in si n u o e. n is ole s is gove no ’ le is e ui e to tten nu be o bo eetings n on e en es. e bo o gove no s eets t ee ti es eve t o e s t i e in si n on e in u o e. e G is l s el in ing o e. © Asia

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e ent to is i st eeting in ig tvi in il 201 . e ve on e en e o t o s u ing i t e gove no s evie e en itu e o t e bu get n t e o o t e e e utive bo . t is u to e gove no to t e initi tives to o ote i e s n ot e et issues t e ig t ve. ile in tvi u ing inne one evening it st u e s ste o o tunit t t t e e s no te inne s e e o subst n e to ise ’s o ile. t t e ne t eeting in ing o e in De e be 201 got t e gove no s to g ee in in i le t t e s oul ovi e l to o s e eso subst n e to s e on issues su s u n ig ts n li te nge. ve suggeste t t o e is esi ent obinson s oul be one o t ese s e e s. not e ont ibution b ’ le s to ig lig t t t i e to o t e este Be tt ib ionnu ll o e is u entl i ing t e si u o e useu et o . s ble to o ote t is t gove no eetings s n e le o t ount su s el n n ont ibute in te s o e nges on issues t t e o on e n to us su s onse v tion o ultu e. ’ le believes el n is un ing bove its eig t en it o es to its e be s i o . ount is s e to ont ibute one to s t e unning o ’s e e utive b n in ing o e i e lo s st o eo le o e o use on b inging toget e ivil so iet g ou s in u o e n si . t esent t e is Gove n ent ont ibutes € 000 e i is si il to t t ont ibute b t e .

ASEF is a subset of ASEM, the biennial meeting of the EU and Asian Heads of Government which convenes alternately in Europe and in Asia. Peter Ryan , Consul General of Ireland in Hong Kong and Macau, was seconded by the Department of Foreign Affairs to the ASEF Secretariat in Singapore as director of intellectual exchange 2006 - 2009. Dr Tom Hardiman was the Irish Governor in ASEF 2001 - 2009 followed in this role by Ambassador Joe Hayes.

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MALAYSIA

Steady

Growth Path

AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Syed Sultan Bin Mohd Idris

MALAYSIA is strategically located in the heart of Southeast Asia, making it the ideal gateway for Irish companies to access the vast ASEAN market, which has a combined GDP value of US$2.4tr encompassing a total population of 604.8 million.

Under the ASEAN partnership, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is scheduled to be executed in 2015 which will transform ASEAN into a region with free movement of goods, services, investment, skilled labour, and free flow of capital.

Other than the ASEAN market, Malaysia is also a gateway to other markets with preferential access through its free trade agreements (FTAs) – with China, Japan, India, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Chile and Turkey. The total potential market value is US$2.4tn with tariff reduction mostly eliminated by 2016.

Aside from the strategic location, Irish companies should consider Malaysia as a centre of investment as it offers better infrastructure and utility services than other markets, a reasonable cost of living, suitable business environment and abundance of qualified human capital.

Malaysia welcomes high value-added, high capital intensive and knowledge-based investment into the country. e e ono is iven b t e gove n ent’s t get to ieve developed nation status by 2020. In line with this, the government launched the national Economic Transformation Programme, with a gross national income (GNI) per capita target of US$15,000 and the goal of attracting US$444bn in investments and creating 3.3 million new jobs.

Various programmes have been identified to achieve GNI growth. These industries or sectors are known as the 12 National Key Economic Areas (NKEAs).

Based on these NKEAs, the sectors of most interest from el n ’s e s e tive e e u tion e lt e tou is business services, communications content and infrastructure and agriculture and regional establishment.

Malaysia also promotes the following sectors in which Irish companies have strength: life sciences, information

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and communications technologies; food and drink; high-tech manufacturing; and clean/green technology.

Ireland and Malaysia have to work together to engage more Irish industry players, such as the Irish Food & Drink Federation, Ireland Renewable Energy Association, Irish Edible Oils Association and other relevant industry bodies to promote the acceptance and sustainability of Malaysian palm oil products.

Malaysia is one of the top exporters of palm oil to Ireland.

Palm oil is used for food, cosmetics and many other products. It is found in one out of ten supermarket products. Palm oil is also being increasingly used to replace other oils for biofuel to meet the EU targets and standards.

In the education sector, we are focused on sustainable engagements and smart partnerships between universities in Malaysia and Ireland as follows: • Research collaboration – in the fields of aerospace, maritime, sport sciences, and agriculture. Medical oriented studies such as food technology and allied health sciences could be other possible options that could be looked into and expanded further.

• Student exchange programme – undergraduates gain international exposure and skills, which help in both personal and professional development and stimulate creative ideas, enhance relationships and strengthen the understanding of cross-cultures.

• Staff exchange programme – sharing best practices, initiatives, expertise and working procedures. This helps to improve skills, motivation, gain new perspectives, expand networking and promote knowledge exchange.

• Knowledge exchange – exploring more opportunities for academics to do post-graduate courses and do their sabbatical in Ireland and Malaysia. Malaysia intends to invest more in the professional talent development agenda as more specialists and researchers are needed in the future.

There are positive signs from Irish companies looking into ASEAN markets and setting up offices in Malaysia.

With the ever increasing sectors that could be exploited, Malaysia looks forward to welcoming more Irish investors in addition to the existing Irish companies SteriPack, Dortek , Openet and Scandisks.

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ECONOMIC OVERVIEW THE MALAYSIAN economy is expected to remain on a steady growth path with economic activities continuing to be supported by growth in domestic demand amid a moderation in exports.

Moving forward, domestic demand will remain as the key driver of growth.

While private consumption is expected to moderate, it will remain supported by the steady rise in income and employment, and the additional disposable income from lower oil prices.

Investment activity is projected to remain resilient, with broad-based capital spending by both the private and public sectors cushioning lower oil and gas-related investment activity. While export growth will be affected by lower commodity prices, the performance of manufactured exports is expected to improve.

Inflation for 2015 is expected to be lower than earlier anticipated due to lower energy and commodity prices.

Banks in Malaysia have very strong ratings. Malaysian banks are among the top-five highest-rated banking systems in the Asia Pacific including Japan and are ranked second in ASEAN.

NATIONAL FLAG

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The flag of Malaysia, also known as the Jalur Gemilang (stripes of glory), comprises a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton bearing a crescent and a 14-point star known as the Bintang Persekutuan (Federal Star).

The 14 stripes, of equal width, represent the equal status in the federation of the 13 member states and the federal government, while the 14 points of the star represent the unity between these entities.

The crescent represents Islam, the country’s official religion the blue canton symbolises the unity of the Malaysian people the yellow of the star and crescent is the royal colour of the Malay rulers.

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National population: 30.26 million (2015 est) List of top five cities and population of each: – Kuala Lumpur (capital): 1,674,621 – Johor Bahru: 1,386,569 – Georgetown: 520,202 – Ipoh: 767,794 – Kuching: 617,887 Area Total: 330,290 sq km Currency: ringgit (MYR) Religion/s: Islam (official) 61.3pc, Buddhist 19.8pc, Christian 9.2pc, Hindu 6.3pc, Confucianism, Taoism, other traditional Chinese religions 2.6pc Language/s: Malay (or Bahasa Malaysia as known locally), English is spoken widely as it is compulsory in education and is used widely in government, business and media. Other languages are spoken also such as Chinese (various dialects including Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan and Foochow), Tamil and Hindi.

Bilateral trade with Ireland: US$480.44m (2014 estimate) Irish exports to Malaysia: US$341.31m (2014 estimate) Malaysian exports to Ireland: US$139.13m (2014 estimate) GDP: US$326.9bn (2014 estimate) GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$746.1bn (2014 estimate) Real GDP growth: – 2015: 4.7pc (Asian Development Bank projection) – 2014: 6pc – 2013: 4.7pc – 2012: 5.6pc GDP per capita (current prices): US$10,803.5 (2014) GDP per capita (PPP): US$24,654.2 (2014) GDP share of world total: 0.7pc GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 11.2pc, industry 40.6pc, services 48.1pc (2013 figures)

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VIETNAM

Growth momentum AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Nguyen Van Thao

COMMITMENT, patience and efforts to build friendship are greatly rewarded while doing business in Vietnam. st e uo ’s Business li te n e B egul barometer of business sentiment among European companies operating in Vietnam, climbed up significantly, hitting a three-year high, reflecting the optimism of foreign investors.

Up to now, the foreign investment sector remained a significant source of growth for the Vietnamese economy, accounting for nearly 20pc of GDP, 22pc of total investment, supplying two-thirds of merchandise exports and providing a quarter of employment in the enterprise sector. nte n tion l investo s e tt te b ietn ’s oliti l stability, competitive labour costs, a relatively skilled and disciplined workforce, and proximity to Chinese supply chains.

The sectors of most interest for Irish businesses are information technology, agriculture and food processing, dairy products, chemicals, plastics, oil and gas, pharmaceutical, textiles, education, infrastructure development, services, environment technology, energy, tourism, engineering, machinery, and equipment. eB o e st oje te t t e it oo onsu tion in lo l u en te s in ietn is to g o t o oun annual rate of 18.6pc over the period 2013-2018 – implying that the Vietnamese food industry will offer tremendous growth opportunities. ietn ’s oo se to is less evelo e t n in ot e ount ies in Southeast Asia, but it is growing quickly. A youthful population, changes in lifestyle and rising incomes are driving growth of high quality imported food products.

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The government is also prioritising the development of food processing, which offers investment, consulting and supply opportunities for Irish businesses in areas such as fruit, seafood and dairy farming.

On top of this, the Vietnamese government is also creating incentives to boost foreign direct investment in the domestic agricultural sector, such as the import duties exemption for all direct investment in domestic agricultural production.

Opportunities can be found in high added value segments in this area such as processing, trade in the value chain of agricultural commodities and the application of science and technology.

Vietnam has set itself the challenge of improving education standards to ensure it has the skills required to support the ount ’s e ono i n so i l o e nis tion.

There is strong potential to continue to grow the number of international students coming to Ireland. Opportunities also exist to develop and deliver education systems in Vietnam such as curriculum development.

The possibility of signing a co-operation agreement on education and training is also worth considering, thus creating the legal framework for strengthening bilateral co-operation in this potential field in the near future.

The most important factors to secure the sustainable development of the Vietnam economy in 2015 and the years e e t e gove n ent’s o it ent to us o institutional reform, economic restructuring and strengthen the iv te se to ’s o etitiveness n its ti i tion in t e v lue chain.

Vietnamese people find closeness to the Irish culture in respect to family and friendship. There is no doubt that Irish people will value the passion for learning that exists in the Vietnam culture.

Vietnam and Ireland share many common values that could contribute to strengthening bilateral relations. © Asia

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VIETNAM

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW The remarkable developments in Vietnam during the past 30 years are coupled with drastic institutional reforms, which by their nature aim to enhance market mechanisms for economic activities, unleash internal strengths and improve competitiveness.

In 2014, the growth rate reached 5.98pc. The current growth momentum lies in the comprehensive economic restructuring on public investment, financial markets, state-owned enterprises and strategic breakthroughs in the market economy, infrastructure modernisation and human resources development.

According to the Doing Business Report published by the World Bank in tobe 201 ietn ’s business envi on ent n ing s i ove b 21 oints to 1 ve sus 1 in 201 . ietn ’s o etiveness in e s been moved up from 70/148 to 68/148, assessed by World Economic Forum. Large inte n tion l e it ting gen ies ve u g e ietn ’s ebt ting n t e outlook was raised from stable to positive.

With the prospect of finalising 14 free trade agreements (FTAs) in 2015–2020, including the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and the EU-Vietnam FTA, Vietnam will become an important chain of the wide network of economic linkages involving 55 partners including 15 members of G20.

These are the basic foundations for Vietnam to deepen its regional and inte n tion l integ tion it lise on t e uge e te n l esou es o n tion l development, accelerate economic restructuring and deepen its participation in global value chains.

Within the region, Vietnam is not only a potential market with more than 90 million people but also a gateway to access the vast market of ASEAN with 600 million people and GDP of US$2.31tr (ranked the 9th in the world in terms of scale).

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NATIONAL FLAG The National flag of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is rectangular in shape, its width is equal to two-thirds of its length, and in the middle of the red background is a bright five-pointed yellow star. It was first used in the ‘Southern prising’ of 23 November 1940 against French rule. The red background represents blood and also the re olution spirit, while the yellow foreground represents ‘the colour of our race’s s in’. The fi e points of the star represent the unity of intellectuals, peasants, workers, traders and soldiers.

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NATIONAL DAY: 2 September 1945 DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN VIETNAM AND IRELAND: 5 April 1996

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National population: 90.3 million List of top five cities and population of each: – Ho Chi Minh city: 7.921 million – Hanoi: 7.189 million – Hai Phong: 1.978 million – Da Nang: 1.051 million – Can Tho: 1.298 million) Area: 331,210 sq km Currency: Viet Nam Dong (VND) Timezone: GMT + 7 hours Religions Buddhist 9.3pc, Catholic 6.7pc, Hoa Hao 1.5pc; Cao Dai 1.1pc; Protestant 0.5pc, Muslim 0.1pc Language: Vietnamese, English, French, Chinese, Khmer Bilateral trade with Ireland: €182.96m, U$254.75m Irish exports to Vietnam: €152.5m Vietnam exports to Ireland: €73.38m Gross Domestic Product (GDP): US$192.090bn GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$509.466bn Real GDP growth: - 5.89pc (2011) - 5.03pc (2012) - 5.42pc (2013) - 5.98pc (2014) - 6.2pc (forecast for 2015) GDP per capita (current prices): US$2,120 GDP per capita (PPP): US$4,001 GDP share of world total: 0.414pc GDP sector breakdown: agriculture (18.2pc), industry (38.5pc) and services (43.3pc)

Sources: IMF, CIA, General Statistics Office of Vietnam

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VIETNAM

From aid to trade:

Ireland’s engagement in Vietnam Ambassador of Ireland to Vietnam Damien Cole talks about how the Irish embassy in Hanoi has contributed to Vietnam’s development Since the opening of the Irish embassy in Hanoi in 2005, Ireland s e jo ont ibution to ietn ’s evelo ent sto . ne o t e ost innov tive n i o t nt ele ents o t e is i og e s been t e is Develo ent e ien e ing og e e s. is g e out o esi e b t e ietn ese gove n ent to learn how Ireland transformed itself into a modern, open, hi-tech e ono .

Since the programme was established, it has helped Vietnam le n bout el n ’s in ust i l n g i ultu l evelo ent n s s e e e ien e o e ono i gove n n e n g o t . n ition l ost 100 ietn ese stu ents ve stu ie business n el te is i lines in el n . e ill be o e n important bridge between our two countries as they take up senior ositions in in ust in n i l se vi es n gove n ent. e s is s e i i ll esigne to o ote n ovi e t e s ills nee e to t ns o ietn into o e n e ono .

Most of the candidates on the programme will return to work in t e iv te se to in ietn b inging t ei e e ien e n bilities to el t ei o nies n t e e o e ietn ’s e ono evelo . e e b ss lso o s losel it nte ise el n to s e i i ll ovi e t gete t ining in so e e s ills g s o ietn in lu ing se vi es eting n o u t evelo ent. in e t e is i og e beg n e’ve seen ole

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se ies o ne el tions i s evelo bet een gove n ent n in ust in bot ount ies. ese el tions i s i g e out o t e i og e ve o ene u ne o o tunities in t e g i business se to in ti ul . ve ll ou t e volu es ve g o n ste il n e u bout 2 t is e . it t e on lusion o ee t e g ee ent it t e l te t is e e e e t to see t e g o even o e es e i ll in t e g i business se to it dairy and pigmeat presenting important opportunities for Irish o nies. n tu l evolution ill be o e t e bet een el n n Vietnam in key market sectors, including agri-business, ICT se vi es e u tion se vi es n vi tion se vi es.

Be use e’ve evelo e n ultiv te st ong el tions i s it gove n ent n business in t ese e s e s oul be ble to it lise on t e ove t e ne t e e s. e t en is ositive n g o ing st ongl .

In Asia, building and maintaining relationships really matters, bot it gove n ent n in ust . n t e e b ss e n el o nies t into ole net o o ont ts t t e’ve built u ove e eo tivit .

I would encourage companies to use the embassy network to el o en oo s in ietn . e otenti l is eno ous n e’ li e to see o e is o nies visit t e et n loo t o t e n sei e t ose o o tunities.

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MAKE TH E OR DI NARY LOCATED IN THE HEART OF DUBLIN’S BUSTLING CITY CENTRE, OFFERING 150 STYLISH BEDROOMS AND SUITES. WITH STATE OF THE ART MEETING FACILITIES FOR UP TO 400 DELEGATES. FOR THAT WOW FACTOR, THE EXCLUSIVE 7TH FLOOR SKY SUITE OFFERS STUNNING PANORAMIC CITY VIEWS WITH ITS OWN PRIVATE BAR, PERFECT FOR AN EXCLUSIVE MEETING.

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RADISSON BLU ROYAL HOTEL, DUBLIN Golden Lane, Dublin 8, Ireland T: +353 1 898 2900 meetings.royal.dublin@radissonblu.com radissonblu.ie/royalhotel-dublin

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THAILAND

Attracting

investment AMBASSADOR INSIGHT HE Kittiphong na Ranong

AS we are celebrating four decades of our diplomatic relations, Thailand and Ireland have much to look forward to. The two countries have always enjoyed cordial ties.

The official visit of former President Mary McAleese to Thailand back in September 2002 was a landmark event.

Meanwhile, the royal visit of Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand to Ireland in September 2014 was the highlight of a most fruitful year for our relations. e o ening o el n ’s e b ss in B ng o l st e s further consolidated the strong political, trade and economic relationship and will support the people-to-people linkages and tourism flows between the two countries. Such a move also reflected el n ’s ene e inte est in out e st si n its e ognition o il n ’s ole in leve ging o o tunities it in t e egion n beyond.

Last year, our bilateral trade was US$809.79m, an increase of 14.81pc. This is due largely to the increasingly active role of the Thai and Irish public and private sectors which have made a significant contribution to this growth.

In 2015, Thailand and the nine fellow member countries of ASEAN will realise the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).

ASEAN is a large market of more than 600 million people and US$2.4tn GDP, making it the sixth largest economy in the world. e ount ies toget e et e ’s t i l gest t ing partner outside Europe with annual bilateral trade in goods and services of some US$270bn.

Supported by strong economic fundamentals and a more competitive and connected AEC, and in particular its strategic location in mainland Southeast Asia, Thailand is well placed for businesses to take advantage of the ASEAN-China free trade agreement to access markets in Southern China and nearby areas.

Looking ahead, Thailand has earmarked about US$75bn for investment in infrastructure projects between 2015 and 2022, which include significant investment in mass transit systems, high speed rail links, double-track rail and transport networks to link with our neighbouring countries.

In the meantime, the royal Thai government has implemented a number of key economic strategies such as special economic zones in border areas, the development of a digital economy, as well as tax and energy reforms. This will help consolidate il n ’s st tus s n invest ent n t ns o t ub in t e egion and create secure regional supply chains and connectivity.

Given el n ’s eno ne e e tise n te nologi l st engt I encourage more participation of businesses and research entities from Ireland in the expansion of our bilateral trade and investment.

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THAILAND

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW il n is out e st si ’s se on l gest e ono it GD o oun . bn. ee et t e ount s st ong o esti et n g o ing i le l ss it t e iv te se to being t e in ive o g o t . e i e ono is ell integ te into t e glob l et l e it e o ts ounting o ove 0 o its GD . Du ing t e st ou e s GD g e on ve ge b . it o esti e n n invest ent s e ive s. s e l e in il n o e s onvenient ess to in n n i s ell s to ot e st si n ount ies su sJ n n t e e ubli o oe . n ition il n ’s e n ing net o o ee t e g ee ents it ot e ount ies s u t e o ene u ess to ets bot it in n outsi e t e egion. ese ou le it its st tegi osition ve et e ount egion l ent e o inte n tion l t vel n t e s ell s ub o v ious in ust ies. e i e ono is esilient to e te n l n inte n l s o s t n s to its obust e ono i un ent ls. e e is st ong u sing o e given lo n st ble in l tion u entl oun 1. n t e lo une lo ent te o 0. . o eign ese ves e ine ig t oun 1 . bn oun 2. ti es s o t te e te n l ebts ing t e i e ono esilient to t e is o vol tilities in t e glob l e ono . n te s o o etitiveness il n is n e 1st ong 1 e ono ies bot v n e n evelo ing b t e o l ono i o u in t e 201 201 e ition o t e Glob l o etitiveness e o t. ts st engt lies in t e oe ono i envi on ent n e 1 t it onsi e ble i ove ent in n e s o e le e lt n i e u tion t n te nologi l e iness t . o eove et si e 22n n goo s et e i ien 0t en ble il n to st n i in t e glob l en . it os it lit n t e e s going n tu e o t e i eo le il n o e s ve el o ing envi on ent to tou ists n business eo le li e. o ing to t e 201 B t lo e u ve il n is n e 1st on t e ono i ’ n e ien e’ e su es. ts ve oun il n to o e tt tive in o e s ious si e o e ties it ien l se vi e n ol l ss e lt e ll t o ble i es.

BUSINESS SECTOR OPPORTUNITIES il n is onsistentl n e ong t e ost tt tive invest ent lo tions in inte n tion l su ve s n t e o l B n ’s 201 se o Doing Business e o t l es il n s t e 1 t e siest ount in t e o l n si t in si in i to o business. o tunities o oss bo e t e e le n businesses n bene it o v ious ivileges o e e b t e Bo o nvest ent B . n ition il n s e entl e u e its o o te in o e t to t e o etitive level o 20 o net o it. n 201 t e o l i gove n ent nnoun e t e est blis ent o

NATIONAL FLAG The flag of Thailand is called Thong Trairong, meaning ‘tricolour flag’. The colours are said to stand for nation religion ing, an unofficial motto of Thailand. Red is for the land and people white is for Buddhism and blue is for the monarchy.

s e i l e ono i ones s long t e bo e s it bo i os n n l si to tt t o eign invest ents n oste t e evelo ent o bo e e s s ell s su o t integ tion it in t e . nvest ent ivileges o so e t es eo bette on itions t n t ose o e e b t e B su s e e tion o o o te in o e t u to eig t e s e u tion b l o utilit bills n t ns o t osts o 10 e s e e tion on i o t ut o te i ls n essenti ls use in t e o u tion o o u ts o e o t o ive e s n e ission to e lo uns ille o eign o e s. nvesto s in 1 t get se to s ill be e e t o o o te in o e t o eig t e s. u se to s in lu e g i in ust is e n el te in ust ies e i s te tiles e i l e ui ent oto ve i les ine n e ui ent ele t i l ine n ele t oni s l sti o u ts euti l in ust ies logisti s in ust i l est tes n tou is .

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National population: 67.0 million Top five cities and population of each: – Rayong (East) – Chacherngsao (East) – Bangkok (Central) – Chonburi (East) – Pranakorn Sri Ayudhaya (Central) Area: 513,120 sq km Currency: Baht (current $1 = 32.5 Thai baht) Religion/s: Buddhism, Islam, Christianity Language/s: Thai (English is also widely spoken and understood.)

GDP: US$373.6bn (2014) Real GDP growth: 7.8pc (2010), 0.1 pc (2011), 6.5pc (2012), 2.9pc (2013), 0.7pc (2014) GDP per capita (purchasing power parity): US$9,900 GDP share of world total: 0.5pc GDP sector breakdown: agricultural 12.1pc, industry 43.6pc, services 44.2pc

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THAILAND

MISSION

POSSIBLE Reputation and relationships are crucial in Thailand and the aim is to build Ireland’s reputation and profile there, according to Ambassador of Ireland to Thailand Brendan Rogers THAILAND is one of the great development success stories. It is the second largest economy in Southeast Asia. Due to smart economic policies, it has become an upper middle income economy.

It also has a fast growing and youthful population of 67 million. The domestic economy is large but Thailand is an export oriented economy and has attracted significant amounts of foreign direct investment.

The success of the Thai economy has created a growing and wealthy middle class. The full implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community in 2015 will create further opportunities for Thailand.

It became clear to me soon after arriving in Thailand in November 2014 that there is little real knowledge of Ireland among the general population, and limited knowledge of Ireland among government and key decision-makers and influencers.

In Thailand, reputation and relationships are crucial, and e e e b ing u on jou ne to buil el n ’s e ut tion and profile here. A presence on the ground can make all the difference.

In Thailand the state remains closely connected to the market both through state-owned or controlled enterprises and through bureaucratic and political ties with dominant market players.

Political access and good relationships with decision and policy makers and opinion shapers are critical to trade and investment promotion. Embassy Bangkok is well placed to develop these relationships.

My first impressions are of the myriad of possibilities and opportunities in a country that is developing rapidly and which in recent years has managed to lift a large proportion of the population out of poverty.

The Thai authorities have been very welcoming and have demonstrated an eagerness to support our efforts here and to learn more about Ireland. We have also been warmly welcomed 78 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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b t e is o unit n ou tne s. t’s n e iting ti e to be in Bangkok as it strives to establish itself as one of the o l ’s jo ities.

There are great opportunities in education, tourism, and food and beverage for Irish companies. I recently signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in education with the Thai Ministry for Education, which will provide the framework within which detailed proposals for educational collaboration can be formulated.

In the short time that we have been here we have managed to forge close relationships with the key players in the education sector and we are working closely with Enterprise Ireland and the Irish universities to boost the profile of Irish education in Thailand.

We are keen to market Ireland as an attractive destination to the growing and increasingly mobile middle class in Thailand.

The inclusion of Thailand in the British-Irish visa scheme later this year will assist our efforts to promote inward tourism.

The expansion of the middle class in Thailand also provides opportunities for exports of our high quality food and beverages.

I would advise any Irish companies considering entering the market to thoroughly research it and consult with people who have been successful in Thailand and know the culture and ways of doing business.

Business people such as Paul Scales, president of the Irish Thai Chamber of Commerce, are a great source of knowledge, expertise and experience and are always willing to offer pragmatic advice to those wishing to learn more about doing business in Thailand. t’s lso i o t nt to o e e e it n o en in t e t e time to build relationships, and seek solid partnerships with those who have a track record here.

We at the embassy in Bangkok are at the service of our businesses seeking to enter the Thai market and we will do everything possible to be supportive. © Asia

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LAOS

Increasing

integration ECONOMIC OVERVIEW LAOS is a landlocked, mountainous country located at the heart of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), bordered by Vietnam, China, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia.

Since the 1990s, economic growth in Laos has helped to reduce poverty levels significantly. High levels of foreign aid and investment in natural resources, supported by mining and exports of hydropower, in particular from China, Vietnam and Japan, has resulted in gross national income doubling since 2006.

Laos is intensifying its integration into the regional and global economy contributing significantly to its further economic development. On 2 February, 2013, Laos officially became a member of the World Trade Organisation, which was the culmination of a 15-year process of key government reforms and negotiations.

In the Seventh National Social and Economic Development Plan (NSEDP) for 2011–2015, Laos outlined its plan to further develop n o e nise t e ount ’s so i l n e ono i in st u tu e and enhance human resource development. This period saw Laos host the landmark ninth Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit in 2012, bringing together European and Asian leaders from over 50 countries. os’s e ono elies on it l intensive n tu l esou e exports, though much of the labour force still relies on subsistence level agriculture with lowland rice production accounting for 80pc of total employment and 25pc of GDP. The economy has grown at a rapid rate over the past decade

NATIONAL FLAG

In the centre is a white disk symbolising the unity of the people under the leadership of the Lao People’s Re olutionary Party and the country’s bright future. It is also said to represent a full moon against the Me ong Ri er. The red stripes stand for the bloodshed by the people in their struggle for freedom and the blue symbolises their prosperity.

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with GDP growth last year of 7.5pc. The Asian Development Bank is projecting 7pc growth for 2015 with mining and hydropower expected to continue growing.

Key priorities outlined for growth and development in Laos include upgrading the quality of agricultural infrastructure and rural roads, strengthening tourism infrastructure and management, expanding water supply and urban infrastructure and services and improving access to health services.

There are multiple opportunities for Irish businesses to improve co-operation with Laos as the economy continues to grow. Key sectors for opportunities include education and training, tourism, and agriculture.

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Population: 6,514,432 (source: 2012) Top five cities and population of each province: – Vientiane: 810,846 – Luangprabang: 471,390 – Savannakhet: 953,511 – Champasack: 678,841 – Huaphanh: 341,972 Area: 236,800 sq km Timezone: UTC/GMT + 7 hours Currency: kip (LAK) Religions: Buddhist (67pc), Christian (1.5pc), other and unspecified (31pc) Ethnic groups: Lao (55pc), Khmou (11pc), Hmong (8pc), other (over 100 minor ethnic groups) 26pc (source: 2005 census) Languages: Lao (official), French, English languages GDP: US$10.1bn (2013 est) GDP (purchasing pwer parity (PPP)): US$20.78bn (2013 est) Real GDP growth: – 8.3pc (2013) – 7.9pc (2012 est) – 8pc (2011 est) GDP per capita (current prices): US$1,628 (2013 estimate) GDP per capita (PPP): US$1,628 (2013 estimate) GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 23.5pc, industry 33.2pc, services 37.4pc (source 2013)

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MYANMAR

Key facts...

National population: 55,746,253 Top five cities and population of each province: – Nay Pyi Taw: 1.016 million – Yangon: 4.705 million – Mandalay: 1.139 million – Mawlamyine: 438,861 – Bago: 244,376 ■ Area: 676,577 sq km ■ Timezone: GMT + 6.30 ■ Currency: Myanmar kyat (MMK) ■ Religion/s: Buddhist (89pc), Christian (4pc), Baptist (3pc), Roman Catholic (1pc), Muslim (4pc), Animist (1pc), other (2pc) ■ Language/s: Burmese (official) and over 100 ethnic languages ■ Gross domestic product (GDP): US$65.29bn ■ GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$244.3bn ■ Real GDP growth: – 2015 (ADB projection): 8.3pc – 2014: 8.5pc – 2013: 8.3pc – 2012: 7.3pc ■ GDP per capita (current prices): US$1,096 (2013 est) ■ GDP per capita (PPP): US$1,700 (2013 estimate) ■ GDP share of world total: 0.09pc ■ GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 37.1pc, industry 21.3pc, services 41.6pc ■ ■

Rapid growth phase ECONOMIC OVERVIEW MYANMAR is st tegi ll lo te in o i o su oun e b si ’s g o ing e ono i o e s it in to t e no t n n i to t e est s ell s t e community on its doorstep. o ing to inse b 202 o e t n l o t e o l ’s onsu ing l ss ill live it in ive ou lig t o n . n is ’s se on l gest ount bo e ing os il n B ngl es in n n i . Des ite n e s o isol tion o t e glob l e ono n is g o ing t i te s e ono i n so i l e o s e implemented. n te s o e ono i evelo ent t e e e t ee e ite i to ive nge in n i l it l te nolog n u n it l evelo ent. e ount is inviting o eign investo s in to s tis t ese e ui e ents. n invest ent into n s s o ete sin e t e int o u tion o e o s n t e li ting o e ono i s n tions o t e n in 201 . o ing to st tisti s o t e n nvest ent o ission o eign i e t invest ent D into n o 201 201 s oet n bn i s bn ove t e oje te t get. is invest ent tivit ente e on t e ene g nu tu ing 2 n tele o s 2 se to s ile ot e e s su s tou is n lot ing nu tu e lso s subst nti l invest ent. n is un e going i g o t n gove n ent e o s e being i le ente to e te business l n s e o utu e g o t . ese i e e ing e o s ill ove e nge te uni i tion i ove ents in onet oli in e ses in t olle tion eo ient tion o ubli e en itu e to s so i l n si l in st u tu e evelo ent o t e in n i l se to n e o s to libe lise t e g i ultu l se to . is jo e o gen n b ing bout g e te invest ent bette in st u tu e n i e so io e ono i evelo ent. e evelo ent o its u n it l is jo o o tunit o n s it is oje te to ve n un e su l o 1 illion s ille n se i s ille o esb 20 0. t e e to s in n ’s e ono i evelo ent in lu e v n ing te nologi l evelo ent in lu ing tele o s in st u tu e s ling u its nu tu ing se to n in st u tu e evelo ent to e e o g e te urbanisation. n t e s o t te n is e e te to ontinue its e ono i evelo ent e it GD g o t o 201 set to e . o ing to t e si n Develo ent B n ’s l test oje tions.

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NATIONAL FLAG

The yellow represents solidarity; the green symbolises peace, tranquility and lush greenery; the red represents courage and determination; and the white star stands for the significance of the union of the country.

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BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

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Diversifying

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National population: 422,675 Capital: Bandar Seri Begawan Area: 5,765 sq km Timezone: GMT + 8 Currency: Brunei dollars Religion/s: Muslim – official (78.8pc), Christian (8.7pc), Buddhist (7.8pc), other – includes indigenous beliefs – (4.7pc) Language/s: Malay (official), English, Chinese dialects GDP: $17.43 billion (2014 estimate) GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): $32.11 billion (2014 estimate) Real GDP growth (2012, 2013, 2014 and prediction for 2015): – 3pc (2015) (IMF) – ADB has it at 0.3pc – 5.4pc (2014) – 1.2pc (2013 estimate) – 0.9pc (2012 estimate) GDP per capita (current prices): $41,255 (2014 estimate) GDP per capita (PPP): $77,700 (2014 estimate) GDP share of world total: 0.3pc GDP sector breakdown (pc composition for agriculture, industry and services): agriculture 0.8pc, industry 66.5pc,

Joint ventu es in t e vi tion t ining s e ve been evelo e BRUNEI DARUSSALAM s one o t e o l ’s l gest en o ents to e B unei egion l ent e o ulti u ose vi tion t ining of hydrocarbons of any country in the world relative to its population n in ti ul eli o te t ining n si ul tion. size. it its o us on o bons t e B unei e ono is i te e e ono s been o in te b t e oil n g s in ust o b lu tu tions in glob l oil n g s i es it lo e e o t e ei ts u o its isto it o bons i e tl ounting o t o e e te in 201 . it t e ive si i tion e o ts un e n i e thirds of total output. incentives for investors, Brunei continues to hold opportunities for B unei s t e t i ig est out ut o oil n g s e it in g e te t e n invest ent o o e tion. t e o l t iling onl t n u it n it is t e nint l gest e o te o li ue ie n tu l g s in t e o l .

B unei’s e ono is e u o t ee in se to s oil n g s t e non o bon iv te se to n t e gove n ent. e non ene g iv te se to is t e l gest e lo e in B unei n ounts o l ost l o t e o o e n l ost u te o GD .

NATIONAL FLAG e signi i nt in ust ies in t is se tion o B unei’s The flag is yellow with two diagonal bands of e ono in lu e onst u tion oles le n et il white (top, almost double width) and black starting from the upper hoist trade, finance, real estate, hotels, hospitality and side. The national emblem in red is superimposed at the centre; yellow tou is g i ultu e o est n is e ies. is the colour of royalty and symbolises the sultanate; the white and e B unei gove n ent is see ing to ive si its blac bands denote Brunei’s chief ministers. e ono b boosting its non o bon iv te The emblem includes five main components: a swallow-tailed flag, the sector and there are deals in place with Chinese royal umbrella representing the monarchy, the wings of four feathers n oe n o nies in t e nu tu ing se to . symbolising justice, tranquility, prosperity and peace, the two upraised is ive si i tion ill be su o te b invest ent in hands signifying the go ernment’s pledge to preser e and promote the si l in st u tu e in lu ing 2bn 0 lin welfare of the people, and the crescent moon denoting Islam, the state to its isol te e ste n egion o e bu ong. religion. n ition B unei is investing in its u n The state motto ‘Always render ser ice with od’s guidance’ appears it l s t e gove n ent see s to o us e u tion in yellow Arabic script on the crescent a ribbon below the crescent n t ining on instilling ent e eneu i lis n reads ‘Brunei, the Abode of Peace’. en ou ge t e oung o ul tion into iv te se to e lo ent.

■ NATIONAL DAY: 23 February u t e s in o o o tunities e being evelo e ■ DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN in t e e s o euti ls oo n oo BR NEI DAR SSALAM AND IRELAND: 1984 ing e ients ene ble ene g n . © Asia

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MONGOLIA

A market economy AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Tulga Narkhuu

THE key sectors that attract most foreign investments in Mongolia are mining exploration, construction, infrastructure, tourism, telecommunications and food processing.

The Investment Law of Mongolia approved in 2013 provides a stable environment and favourable investment conditions.

According to the law, the State may issue a guarantee for stable tax treatment upon request by an investor. If approved, an investor would be entitled to enjoy stable tax treatment for a specific period of time in the form of tax stabilisation certificates or investment agreements.

Mongolia offers significant opportunities to Irish businesses in agriculture and food processing, dairy products, education, vocational training, infrastructure development, engineering, machinery and equipment.

Since Mongolia has a developing economy, there is a growing demand for training of highly skilled employees in the engineering, agriculture, mining and tourism sectors and Ireland has the knowledge and expertise in these fields to share with Mongolia.

There are opportunities for Mongolia and Ireland to develop co-operation in the food and agri-tech sector, especially in food

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safety and agricultural product hygiene. Irish businesses may also provide technical expertise and consultancy and supply agricultural equipment and machinery.

There is an opportunity for Mongolian businesses to trade cashmere and wool products to Ireland. Mongolia is one of the few places in the world where a traditional nomadic lifestyle exists alongside a modern democratic state. Therefore, we would like to see more Irish tourists in our country where they can experience unforgettable adventures in the vast steppes of Mongolia. u olgoi is one o t e o l ’s l gest ne o e gol ines that has been producing and exporting copper and gold concentrate since 2013. When fully operational, it will contribute about a t i o ongoli ’s GD n be t e o l ’s t i biggest o e mine. Once the underground mining activity (worth US$4.2bn) starts, it will produce 400,000 tonnes of copper annually. This would certainly have a significant impact on the economy of Mongolia.

Although Mongolia and Ireland are far from each other geographically, there are many similarities between our countries.

Mongolian and Irish people are both friendly and hospitable nations that greatly respect their national heritage and tradition.

Also, both Irish and Mongolian people have a close relationship with nature and are passionate about horses, folklore music and dance.

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MONGOLIA

Key facts...

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ECONOMIC OVERVIEW Mongolia has transformed from a centrally planned economy into a market economy and conducted its first democratic election 25 years ago. Since then it s be o e one o t e o l ’s stest g o ing e ono ies. o te bet een Russia and China, Mongolia is rich in mineral resources exports of which make 80pc of the total export volume of the country.

Mongolia achieved real GDP growth of 17.5pc in 2011, however due to the fall of coal and copper prices as well as foreign direct investment, real economic growth in Mongolia slowed to 7.8pc in 2014. Exports grew by 19.1pc in the first half of 2014 driven by copper and oil, but imports fell by 8.3pc as mine development slowed. Agriculture expanded by 16.3pc to continue as a key driver of growth. Although the production of the mining sector fell in 2014, the largest copper and gold mine Oyu Tolgoi has continued to export resources from its open pit and produced 148,400 tonnes of copper and 589,000 ounces of gold in concentrates in 2014.

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National population: 3 million List of top three cities and population of each: – Ulaanbaatar: 1,267,024 – Darkhan: 98,969 – Erdenet: 93,947 Area: 1,564,115 sq m Timezone: UTC + 8 hours Currency: Tugrug (MNT) Religion/s: Buddism, Shamanism Language/s: Mongolian Bilateral trade with Ireland: US$3,914,800 as of end 2013 Irish exports to Mongolia: US$3,901,600 as of end 2013 Mongolia exports to Ireland: US$13,200 as of end of 2013 GDP: US$12bn as of 2014 GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$20bn as of 2014 Real GDP growth: – 2011: 17.5pc – 2012: 12.4pc – 2013: 12.5pc – 2014: 7.8 pc GDP per capita (current prices): US$4.087 as of 2014 GDP per capita (PPP): US$6,631 International dollars as of 2014 GDP share of world total: 0.02pc

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CAMBODIA

Olympian of growth AMBASSADOR INSIGHT H.E. Mr. Meas Kim Heng

THIS year a very special one for me since it is my first time to visit Ireland and to assume my duty as Ambassador of the Kingdom of Cambodia to Ireland.

Cambodia and Ireland enjoy a warm friendship and co-operation.

Ireland has contributed to peace and development in Cambodia. We are very grateful for that.

Furthermore, there are currently many Irish tourists visiting Cambodia and bilateral trade between the two countries keeps increasing every year. These contribute to the strengthening of friendly relations between our two countries.

Strategically located in Southeast Asia and as a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Cambodia now enjoys political stability and high economic growth at the rate of over 7pc per year. These factors have created favourable 84 Ireland Asia Business Yearbook 2015

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conditions for Cambodia to offer a lot of opportunities for Irish businesses in many sectors.

Four priority sectors have been encouraged by Government: education, electricity, road and water. There are other sectors with potential such as garments, textiles, tourism, services, construction, agriculture, pharmaceutical, oil and gas, engineering, and machinery.

I firmly hope that Irish businesspeople will look for the opportunity to invest in Cambodia – investing in Cambodia means investing in ASEAN as a whole.

By the end of this year the ASEAN community will have established its own single market with a population of over 600 million.

I am pleased to note that Irish companies are strong in sectors such as energy, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, business technology and communications. We look forward to welcoming them to choose Cambodia as a gateway for ASEAN and beyond.

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CAMBODIA

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW o

n e ono i e s e tive bo i s joine t e l i ns o g o t ’ o ing to t e o l B n in its tobe 201 ono i te. G o ing t n ve ge o . e e ove t e st t o e es t e o l B n s s bo i is t e si t stest g o ing ount in t e o l ove t t e io .

G o t ove t e st e e s been iven b v iet o e in ust ies in lu ing g ent nu tu ing onst u tion tou is n g i ultu e. bo i ’s e ono e e t1 . nnu l g o t in 200 but o e ollo ing t e 200 200 glob l in n i l isis. o ing to t e o l B n bo i ’s GD g o t is e e te to be . in 201 n .2 in 201 . is e ’s ontinue e lt e ono i g o t is un e inne b st ble e te n l se to e o n e on t e b o ising o eign i e t invest ent D in lo s.

G ent e o t g o t s ontinue ile D in lo s e ising ue to t e etu n o el tive l bou et st bilit n investo s’ ene e etite o t e onst u tion n e l est te se to le ing to g o ing onst u tion te i ls i o ts. bo i ’s b n ing n in n i l se to is s e n st ong u oet n 0 e on e in te s o bot len ing n e osits o ing to t e tion l B n o bo i . eg ent se to e o te tot l o . bn l st e ile tou is s el o e . illion o eign tou ists gene ting bn in evenue. bo i s set its t get o i e e o ts to one illion ton in 201 . st e it s e o te ove 0 000 tonnes o i e in 201 to o e t n 0 ount ies. bo i n i e s on t e o l ’s Best i e o t ee onse utive e s sin e 2012. jo v nt ge o oing business in bo i e n tes o t e t t t t e gove n ent t e ts bot lo l n o eign investo s e u ll e eb o eign investo s n et in ig e ent ge etu ns on invest ent in t e ount . t e e s o otenti l g o t in lu e ene g g ents te tiles onst u tion in o tion te nolog g i ultu e ining euti ls oil n g s enginee ing n ine . t is o t noting t t bo i s ove 0 s e i l e ono i ones t t e on u ive to D be use o t in entives. t e bene its in lu e t oli s o u to nine e s 0 t ull i o t ut e e tion o te i ls ine n e ui ent no e o t t n ee e t i tion o o its.

Key facts...

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NATIONAL FLAG

The flag of Cambodia symbolises the country’s slogan: ‘Nation, Religion, King’. The two large blue stripes represent royalty and the centre red stripe represents the nation. The white temple stands for the nation’s religion.

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NATIONAL DAY: 23 December (Emperor’s birthday)

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DATE WHEN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS ESTABLISHED BETWEEN JAPAN AND IRELAND: 5 March 1957

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National population: 15,458,332 (July 2014 est.)

Top five cities and population of each province: – Phnom Penh (capital city): 2,234,566 – Kampong Cham: 1,914,152 – Kandal: 1,280,781 – Battambang: 1,036,523 – Prey Veng: 1,063,494 – Siem Reap: 903,030 Area: 181,035 sq km Timezone: UTC + 7 Currency: riel Religion/s: Buddhism Language/s: Khmer (official language) Bilateral trade with Ireland: US$28,851,164.96 (2012) Amount of Irish exports to Cambodia: US$10,662,980.71 (2012) Amount of Cambodia exports to Ireland: US$18,188,184.25 (2012) GDP: US$18.10bn (2014) GDP (purchasing power parity (PPP)): US$46bn (October 2014, World Bank) Real GDP growth: – 2011: 7.1pc – 2012: 7.3pc – 2013: 7.4pc – 2014: 7.3pc – 2015: 7.5pc GDP per capita (current prices): US$1,130 (2014, MoEF) GDP per capita (PPP): US$3,042 (October 2014, World Bank) GDP share of world total: 0.046pct (est 2013) GDP sector breakdown: agriculture 34.8pc, industry 24.5pc; services 40.7pc (2013 estimated)

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VIEW FROM DUBLIN

Visit by the Lord Mayor of

Dublin to Beijing

Dublin’s Lord Mayor Christy Burke took part in a range of activities when he led a delegation to Beijing last year THE Lord Mayor of Dublin Christy Burke led a delegation from Dublin to attend the World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) annual conference in Beijing, China in September 2014.

Dublin hosted a stand at the event, which was opened by the Lord Mayor, who participated in several panel discussions during t e on e en e in lu ing on ou is ities o o e tion se tu ies n e o en tions’.

While in Beijing, he and the Dublin delegation took the opportunity to visit Tianjin to see the Urban Planning Exhibition Hall and the Tianjin Culture Centre. The visit to Tianjing concluded with a meeting with the Mayor of Tianjin Huang Xingguo to discuss issues of common interest to both Tianjin and Dublin.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin also met with the 2014/15 class o t e Beijing Dublin nte n tion l ollege BD o ve just st te t ei i st e o t ei eg ee. BD e i programmes will seek to link actively to the enterprise sector in both Beijing and Dublin to enhance the innovation content and ente ise elev n e o e u tion l ou ses. o e o t e BD faculty comes from University College Dublin, which partnered it Beijing nstitute o e nolog in est blis ing BD .

The Lord Mayor also had a meeting with the Mayor of Beijing

ng ns un n e st o t e eo le’s Gove n ent o Beijing. During this meeting each side took the opportunity to update each other on progress on the Beijing Dublin Twinning Agreement and also discussed options of future activities between both cities. e Dublin eleg tion s joine t t is eeting it t e is Ambassador to China HE Paul Kavanagh and key staff from t e is e b ss e esenting nte ise el n n t e is Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

During this meeting Mayor Wang confirmed that part of the Ge t ll o in oul be lit in g een o t t i ’s D 2015. is b ss o ul v n g oste e e tion in t e is e b ss to t e o o ’s visit to Beijing. ve 0 eo le o el n o e ll o ing in Beijing tten e t is e e tion. e Dublin eleg tion lso tten e o u tion o e ov’s play The Seagull i s oll bo tion bet een is theatre company Pan Pan Productions and the Square Moon Theatre from Chengdu. This production received funding from ultu e el n . e Dublin eleg tion e e guests o t e is Ambassador at this event.

Lord Mayor of Dublin Christy Burke and Mayor of Beijing Wang Anshun

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Hong Kong A gateway to Asia The opportunities for growth in Hong Kong are wide open in several key sectors, explains Liam Kavanagh, chairman, Ireland Hong Kong Business Forum and MD of The Irish Times WITH the range of opportunities, there is no better time than now to reach out and step in to Asia.

Last summer saw the opening of the first ever Irish consulate in Hong Kong, something the Ireland Hong Kong Business Forum had campaigned for over many years, and we can now see how the consulate will provide a vital stepping stone for Irish o nies to o business in in n si ’s ot e bu geoning economies.

Hong Kong is an open market with seven million residents, growing to 50 million when tourists are included – this means that the market is actually the size of Britain.

The international airport is located less than five flying hours o l o t e o l ’s o ul tion. t is t e o l ’s busiest go g te n one o t e o l ’s busiest ssenge i o ts. ou se e on’t t in o ong ong s e e ste ing stone for doing business elsewhere in Asia. Having visited recently, I can confidently attest to the huge potential for developing the specific trade links that bind Ireland and Hong Kong together.

Firstly, a double taxation agreement has been in place between Ireland and Hong Kong since 2010. There are about 3,000 Irish passport holders working in Hong Kong, and many more have is onne tions. nte ise el n ’s 12 lients in ong ong account for about €100m in trade.

Not only is Hong Kong a leading international trading and services hub, it also has very competitive taxation and no foreign e nge ont ol. u t e o e ong ong’s leg l e o is based on the English common law, which makes it easier for Irish firms to do business there.

The opportunities for growth are wide open in several key sectors.

In financial services, we want to promote Ireland as a destination for Hong Kong and Chinese funds. n te nolog el n ’s st ong e ut tion s ub o innovation and start-up culture is in line with the Hong Kong gove n ent’s t gets to evelo t ese e s.

In tourism, we know that Hong Kong is a key target market for Visit Britain and a range of our European competitors – there were more than 160,000 visitors to Britain from Hong Kong in 2013 and with more than 50 weekly flights to Britain from Hong

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Kong, we believe that there is scope to build strong tourism flows into Ireland.

The food sector is of particular interest to Ireland and Hong ong’s el tions i . n e i s is bee b on t e et in n ount ies it’s o t entioning t t is bee exports to Hong Kong reached a value of €3.5m in 2013; a massive 527pc increase on 2012.

There is a long and distinguished record of Irish educators in Hong Kong, and many thousands of senior business people and political figures have been educated by Irish priests and missionaries based there.

These links mean that students in Hong Kong are often well disposed towards Ireland, and we can use this platform to raise awareness of Irish education.

The working holiday arrangement between Ireland and Hong Kong operates in a similar way to the one-year visa to work in Australia. There are 150 places each year for Irish citizens under 29 years of age to come to Hong Kong and work for a year.

These are just some of the many opportunities and there is no better time than now to reach out and step in to Asia.

Liam Kavanagh, chairman, Ireland Hong Business Forum

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Catalyst for change The One Young World Summit covered issues such as sustainable development, youth entrepreneurship, and peace and reconciliation

Lord Mayor of Dublin Christy Burke with young leaders

THE One Young World Summit took place in Dublin from 15–18 October 2014, involving 1,300 young leaders from across the world sharing innovative solutions for the pressing issues facing the world.

The event, which co-founder David Jones describes as “a platform to give brilliant young people a catalyst to drive change in the world”, incorporates attendees aged between 18 and 30 presenting on and discussing a broad range of topics on major issues facing the world.

Topics covered last year included sustainable development, youth entrepreneurship, climate justice, and peace and reconciliation.

Delegates were joined by household names such as Sir Bob Geldoff, former president of Ireland Mary Robinson, former secretary general of the United Nations Kofi Annan, footballer Sol Campbell and tennis ace Boris Becker.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin Christy Burke said at the summit that it was important that as this event was in Dublin, that Dublin enabled leaders in social change to take part.

Dublin City Council organised two of the Friday breakout sessions – one on start-ups with the new Dublin start-up commissioner Niamh Bushnell and one on social justice with campaigner and freeman of Dublin Fr Peter Mc Verry. e e s i is bout ing i e en e in eo le s lives. t is not about what money you earn or power you hold but rather

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what justice and fair play you create for the most vulnerable and marginalised in our cities,” the Lord Mayor noted at the event.

Dublin it oun il’s inte n tion l el tions i e to ete inneg n l i l i o Dublin on t e title o being u o e’s out Leadership Capital.

“We have the youngest population of any European city and a long and proven history of innovation and leadership that makes the world a better place.

“The fact that Dublin is the city of choice for this event allows us fair claim to be European Capital for Youth and Leadership. I am confident that the actions after the event across the globe by this new generation of leaders will justify our claim.”

Former Irish President Mary Robinson made a plea for young people to act on climate change. In a stark warning she told the summit that time was rapidly running out for us to affect change.

Geldof also warned that humankind could be on the brink of another conflict, which could be worse than World War One or World War Two. He was referring to conflicts in Syria, other parts of the Middle East and parts of Africa.

During the summit workshops were held with young people from Northern Ireland to share experiences of living with conflict.

Jones and co-founder of One Young World Kate Robertson explained why Dublin was chosen as the host of the 2014 su it et e it’s o t e o t o et e it’s o t e g e t e ession its sto is one o t iu it’s one o so iet it’s one o o un l v lues it’s one o eo le ulling t oug . o eve ot e s e ts lso te in t e it ’s vou t e strength of the bid by the two young ambassadors Bob Coggins n l elle e n t e it ’s osition s obe tson ut it s “the capital of new technology for the whole of Europe”.

Dublin had taken the responsibility to host the 2014 summit during the 2013 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.

A total of 190 countries sent representatives to the Dublin summit; the delegates came from all corners of the globe and included many Asian participants, including from China, Korea (North and South), Thailand, Indonesia, and Cambodia.

Governor of Bangkok M.R. Sukhumbhand Paribatra attended the Dublin event and took the mantle of hosting the 2015 summit from the Lord Mayor of Dublin.

During his time in Dublin Governor M.R. Sukhumbhand ib t el eeting it t e o o n visite Dublin’s City Hall to see the story of the capital and had a tour of the Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, led by director Dr Barbara Dawson.

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Chamber link

Dublin Chamber has developed strong business relationships with many countries, in particular China, over the past decade FOUNDED in 1783, Dublin Chamber has represented the interests of business across the Greater Dublin area for more than 200 years.

The chamber assists many international companies to network with Dublin-based businesses. Companies can access a range of services that include networking and learning events, business advisory services, international business assistance, and policy consultations.

Our history as a chamber is based on international trade and we have developed strong business relationships with many countries, in particular China, over the past decade.

China has traditionally proved a tough market to access for Irish companies and an increasingly popular way to access China is to use Hong Kong as a launch pad.

This was one of the main reasons for the setting up of the Ireland Hong Kong Business Forum in 2002, a joint venture between the chamber and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office.

The forum has been instrumental in giving chamber members an opportunity to network, explore business opportunities, exchange views and learn of developments in both Hong Kong and also China.

As the largest business organisation in the Dublin region, Dublin Chamber has collaborated significantly with Beijing over recent years, helping to develop the business relationship

between the two cities.

Dublin Chamber regularly organises business briefings and matchmaking events for Chinese delegations travelling to Ireland.

This typically involves the chamber bringing in guest expert speakers and organising one-to-one meetings between delegates and Dublin Chamber member companies.

Dublin has been twinned with Beijing since 2011. The core objective of the twinning is to effect economic, educational and cultural benefits to Dublin businesses, institutes and citizens and to reciprocate these benefits to the City of Beijing.

Memoranda of understanding (MoUs) were signed with the Beijing Chamber of International Commerce (CCPIT Beijing) in 2007 and with the Beijing WTO Affairs Centre during Mayor of Beijing Guo Jinlong’s visit to Dublin in 2011.

MoUs signed in 2011 with CCPIT Dalian and 2013 with CCPIT Hebei further strengthen our relationships within the north-east region.

Through these relationships and our 27 Enterprise Europe Network partners in Europe and Asia, the Dublin Chamber is well placed to support companies interested in entering the Asian marketplaces.

If you are interested in learning more about these activities or our chamber please contact International@dublinchamber.ie or call (+353) 1 6447200.

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CORK CITY

Co-operating nations Engagement between China and Cork, which began in 2003, has opened up many new avenues CORK has been involved in co-operation projects with China since 2003 and Shanghai has been a sister city since a formal agreement was concluded in 2005.

Subsequently, co-operation agreements were concluded with Hangzhou and Wuxi in 2011 and with Shenzhen in 2013.

Each of these agreements seeks activity and collaboration in the areas of local government, business, education, culture and tourism. The overall aim of the engagements is to benefit the citizens of each city.

Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr Mary Shields said recently: “The engagement with China has been both challenging and rewarding for Cork. It has opened vistas on a very different culture and society, which at the same time share some commonalities with Cork. In a global context, it is necessary to experience different world views and be familiar with different customs. The relationships that Cork has developed in China facilitate this flow of people and ideas.”

Whilst Cork City Council concluded the formal agreements with the governments in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Wuxi and Shenzhen, the substantial activities are carried out by many stakeholders, including Cork Chamber, Cork Institute of Technology, Tyndall National Institute, University College Cork (UCC), the Cork Education and Training Board, Fáilte Ireland and Port of Cork.

In addition, may arts and culture organisations, primary and secondary schools, and individual companies have begun to be active in China.

There are currently five Chinese companies operating in Cork – Huawei, Firecomms, Beingmate, Fota Island Resort and a consortium comprising Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings Ltd, Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd and Li Ka Shing Foundation Ltd, which operates a waste water treatment facility in the city.

UCC has many links with China and is home to the UCC Confucius Institute, which was commended internationally in 2011 as Confucius Institute of the Year.In addition, 10 primary and secondary schools in Cork have signed twinning agreements with

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schools in Shanghai. It is anticipated that a similar programme will proceed with Wuxi in 2015.

A cornerstone of the project has been an officials’ programme that has run since 2004. Each summer, two or three officials from the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government or one if Shanghai’s district governments have spent eight weeks working in Cork City Council. The programme was extended to Wuxi in 2013.

These officials have been exposed to local government practice in Ireland and also have provided insights into Chinese local governance. In turn, they are now key contacts for Cork in China and have provided much useful guidance and many important introductions for Cork delegations in China.

Cork City Council is pleased to be co-operating with Asia Matters on two important events that will be held in Cork in July 2015, the Cork China Business Summit and the Ireland Asia Food & Agritech Forum.

The events will address two important themes – the opportunities in the food sector for Irish companies in Asia and the opportunities for the south-west of Ireland with the Lower Yangtze region, which is made up of the provinces of Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Cork County Council and Kerry County Council are also developing relationships with the latter two provinces respectively.

The signing of the memorandum of understanding between Cork City and Shenzhen

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CORK COUNTY

International outlook Co Cork has strong links with Jiangsu Province in China, with an initiative formalised recently with the aim of benefiting both regions

Baltimore Beacon in Co Cork

WITH a population in excess of 500,000 (more than 10pc of Ireland’s total), Co Cork makes a major contribution to the Irish economy.

It has successful clusters in the area of biopharma, ICT, energy, medical technologies, the marine and agri-food. It is the home to many multinational companies in these sectors such as Apple, EMC, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, SKB, Danone, Kerry, Dairygold and Huawei.

Many of these companies and others have their European or EMEA headquarters located here, due in large part to the internationally focused talent pool, which makes it easy for companies to invest in Cork.

As part of its international outlook, Co Cork has strong links with Jiangsu Province in China, an initiative formalised recently with the aim of benefiting both regions through trade, business, education and cultural links.

Mayor Alan Coleman meeting Governor Li Xueyong

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Successful economic regions are characterised by strong inter-agency collaborative partnerships that proactively drive strategies for economic growth.

Through the Cork Area Strategic Plan process, Cork is perfectly placed to deliver sustainable economic growth. It has allowed a triple helix working relationship to develop between government, business and education, which together with a highly skilled workforce, world-class education, training and research facilities, good connectivity, strength in global growth business sectors, and a growing SME sector have contributed to Cork’s resilience during the recent economic crisis.

Cork is not just a good place to do business however, it is also a great place to visit. It has a huge array of cultural, historic, scenic beauty and amenity sites spread through out the county that provide easy access to both locals and visitor alike to such amenities. The people of Cork are very welcoming and it is an attractive environment for the rising number of Asian tourists who visit Ireland on an annual basis.

Ease of movement and access to both quality employment and a high quality of life is the reason why large numbers of people who come to Cork with the intention of working for a short period often settle down in the county. There are currently 4,042 Asians living in Cork City and County, according to the 2011 census.

During a trip to Jiangsu last year, Mayor Alan Coleman had an official meeting with the Governor of Jiangsu Province Li Xueyong to sign a letter of intent between Cork County and Jiangsu.

The trip also included a group visit to Xuzhou Number One Middle School by Mayor Alan Coleman, chief executive Tim Lucey, and principals of Cork schools Kinsale Community School, Davis College Mallow and Midleton College. Jiangsu has a population of 79 million.

Mayor Alan Coleman, Cork county manager Tim Lucey, principals of Cork schools: Kinsale Community School, Davis College Mallow and Midleton College, with teachers of Xuzhou No1 Middle school in Jiangsu province, China.

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FASHION

Irish expert showcases Chinese fashion to the world In 2013, Irish-born fashion curator Gemma Williams began to research the landscape of contemporary fashion and design in Mainland China and the result is a book entitled ‘Fashion China’.

HAVING graduated from Dublin Institute of Technology, her attention turned to China when managing the flagship gallery at London ollege o s ion’s Oxford Circus campus.

“As a curator, my practice is focused on promoting and creating fashion narratives based on emerging design.

China is an incredibly dynamic country and the

fashion industry in particular is expanding at a rapid pace,” she says.

“However, little is known about contemporary Chinese brands and this for me was key. It was really exciting to investigate and unravel the fashion system in a completely different culture and society - ultimately distilling who I felt are or will be the indust ’s e l e s.

Williams firmly believes this book is both necessary and timely, and is finally directing the spotlight on the Chinese industry.

“Much like the Irish designers I showcased at Irish Design 201 ’s e ibition n t e ol ’ it is g e t to see oung e e ging designers from Mainland China looking to their heritage to inform their design approach.”

Fashion China, published by Thames & Hudson, is available in bookstores and on amazon.com

Paul Costelloe entering Asia FURTHER to building a large presence in its domestic markets of Ireland and the UK, fashion brand Paul Costelloe is pushing forward with an entry into Asia, initially focusing on China.

This push was kicked off in November 2014 with a first major catwalk show held by Paul Costelloe in the enclaves of the Irish Embassy in Beijing.

The designer presented his Spring/Summer 2015 collection, which was met with great admiration by the Chinese government, fashion and media representatives attending.

The event was of heightened significance by coming ahead of the launch of the Year of Irish Design, which is promoting Irish creativity globally over the course of 2015.

Since starting his own label, Paul Costelloe Collections, in Dublin in the early 1980s, Costelloe has built up a strong reputation for using beautiful, exquisite fabrics and materials, traditional design techniques and some of the most expert manufacturers and tailors in the world.

While initially focusing on womenswear and designing for high-profile individuals like Diana Princess of Wales, the brand has grown and diversified a lot over the past 35 years and now operates in the areas of menswear, homewares, childrenswear, opticals, jewellery, bags and accessories, as well as uniforms

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for some of the most recognisable corporations and sports teams.

As the brand offers a unique story with quality products and a strong track-record, the emergence of a more sophisticated consumer in China that understands fabrics and feel and is looking for something different presents a tremendous opportunity for Paul Costelloe, he believes.

Ambassador of Ireland to China Paul Kavanagh with models at Paul Costelloe show

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FASHION

Joseph Walsh launches ID2015 in Tokyo

Joseph Walsh has made a name worldwide with his unique and spectacular designs in Ash and other woods CO CORK designer Joseph Walsh spoke about his life and work in the context of the Year of Irish Design 2015 at a reception hosted by Ambassador of Ireland to Japan HE Anne Barrington at the Irish Embassy residence in Tokyo on 27 January. e event in lu e t l entitle Di logue in ing’ i o use on o ls ’s el bo te o is e lise n on the process and the dialogue between members of the team t Jose ls tu io t o o o eisu e i ste e n ent i i e eJ nese. s one o el n ’s le ing esigne s ls s e name worldwide with his unique and spectacular designs in Ash and other woods. His creative approach reflects his appre ciation of nature and his desire to engage the user with visual and tactile forms. e un e st n ing n s t eti use o t e te i l t e intimate relationship between the process of finding forms and e ting st u tu es t e ontinuit n esolve o t e on e t to t e ing o ess ll e ine ls ’s stu io n o today.

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ls ’s o is egul l e ibite t t e jo t n esign i s n is in n signi i nt inte n tion l olle tions in lu ing t e useu o ts n Design in e o t e int useu o t Design in lotte o t olin t e tion l useu o el n in Dublin t e Du e o Devons i e olle tion t ts o t ouse in ngl n n t e b ss of Japan in Dublin.

Convened by the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland and supported by the Government and the Department of Foreign is n e is Design 201 is e long og e to promote contemporary Irish design in every form and across n egions in lu ing J n.

“The recent talk at the Embassy of Ireland in Japan was a great opportunity for Keisuke Kawai and I to talk about our o ing el tions i eisu e s t e e n st e esigne ou vie s n o inions bout ou o n es e tives in o e b ou t o ultu es s s ls .

“In 2017 I am working on plans for an exhibition in Japan of o . o t is so e e be s o te n ill t vel to J n n e lise so e o t e o s t e e.

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EMBASSIES ASIAN EMBASSIES ACCREDITED/PENDING ACCREDITATION TO IRELAND EMBASSY OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM 19/20 Belgrave Square, London SW1X 8PG Tel: +4420 7581 0521.

Email: info@bdhcl.co.uk High Commissioner: H.E. Major General Retd Dato Paduka Seri Haji Aminuddin Ihsan Bin Pehin Orang Kaya Saiful Mulok Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin THE ROYAL EMBASSY OF CAMBODIA 64 Brondesbury Park, Willesden Green, London NW6 7AT Tel: +4420 8451 7850. Email: cambodianembassy@btconnect.com Web page: www.cambodianembassy.org.uk Ambassador: H.E. Meas Kim Heng EMBASSY OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA 40 Ailesbury Road, Dublin 4 Tel: +3531 269 1707 / 1 260 1119.

Email:pa.chineseembassy.ie@gmail.com Web page: http://ie.chineseembassy.org Ambassador: H.E. Xu Jianguo EMBASSY OF INDIA 6 Leeson Park, Dublin 6 Tel: +3531 497 0806/ 1 497 0987 / 1 496 6770.

Email: indembassy@eircom.net Web page: www.indianembassy.ie Ambassador: H.E. Radhika Lal Lokesh EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA 38 Grosvenor Square, London W1K 2HW Tel: +4420 7499 7661.

Email: kbri@btconnect.com Web page: www.indonesianembassy. org.uk Ambassador: H.E. Teuku Muhammad Hamzah Thayeb EMBASSY OF JAPAN Nutley Building, Merrion Centre, Nutley Lane, Dublin 4 Tel: +3531 202 8300.

Email: protocol@ir.mofa.go.jp Web page: www.ie.emb-japan.go.jp Ambassador: H.E. Chihiro Atsumi EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA 15 Clyde Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 Tel: +3531 660 8800.

Email: irekoremb@mofat.go.kr Web page: http://irl.mofat.go.kr Ambassador: H.E. Hae-yun Park EMBASSY OF THE LAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC 49 Porchester Terrace W2 3TS Tel: +4420 7402 3770, Email: laosemblondon@gmail.com Ambassador: H.E. Sayakane Sisouvong EMBASSY OF MALAYSIA Level 3A - 5A, Shelbourne House, Shelbourne Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 Tel: 01 667 7280.

Email: maldublin@kln.gov.my Web page: www.kln.gov.my/web/ irl_dublin/home Ambassador: H.E. Syed Sultan Bin Mohd Idris EMBASSY OF MONGOLIA 7 Kensington Court, London W8 5DL Tel: 004420 7937 0150.

Email: office@embassyofmongolia.co.uk Web page: www.embassyofmongolia.co.uk Ambassador: H.E. Tulga Narkhuu

EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE UNION OF MYANMAR 19A Charles Street W1J 5DX Tel: 004420 7499 4340.

Email: generalenquiries@ myanmarembassylondon.com Web page: www.myanmarembassylondon. co.uk Ambassador: H.E. Kyaw Zwar Minn EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 6-11 Suffolk Street SW1Y 4HG Tel: 004420 7451 1780.

Email: embassy@philemb.co.uk philembassy-uk.org Ambassador: H.E. Enrique A. Manalo EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE 9 Wilton Crescent, Belgravia, London SW1X 8SP Tel: 004420 7235 8315.

Email: Singhc_lon@sgmfa.gov.sg Web page: www.mfa.gov.sg/london Ambassador: H.E. Foo Chi Hsia THE ROYAL THAI EMBASSY 29-30 Queen’s Gate, London SW7 5JB Tel: 004420 7589 2944.

Email: rtelondon@thaiembassyuk.org.uk Web site: www.thaiembassyuk.org.uk Ambassador: H.E. Kittiphong Na Ranong EMBASSY OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM 12-14 Victoria Road, London W8 5RD Tel: 004420 7937 1912.

Email: vanphong@vietnamembassy.org.uk Web page: www.vietnamembassy.org.uk Ambassador: H.E. Van Thao Nguyen

HONORARY CONSULS TO ASIA IN IRELAND HONORARY CONSUL OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA 13 Classon House, Dundrum Business Park, Dundrum, Dublin 14 Tel: 087 268 8805.

Email: martin.murray@asiamatters.biz H.E. Martin Murray, c/o Asia Matters HONORARY CONSUL OF MONGOLIA Bellevue, Delgany, Co. Wicklow Tel: 087 2441244 Email: Marksherry58@gmail.com H.E. Mark John Sherry HONORARY CONSUL OF THE PHILIPPINES 39 Fitzwilliam Street, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 437 6206 E-mail: Honorary.Consul@ PhilippineConsulate.ie www.philippineconsulate.ie H.E. Mark Christopher Congdon HONORARY CONSUL OF SINGAPORE 2 Upper Ely Place, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 669 1700 E-mail: ron.bolger@ely.ie H.E. Ronald J. Bolger HONORARY CONSUL OF THAILAND Honorary Consul Unit 43 Parkwest, O’Casey Ave, Nangor Road, Dublin 12 Tel: 01 6436468 www.thaiconsulateireland.com H.E. Barry Connolly

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IRELAND’S DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION IN ASIA DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION FOR BRUNEI is handled by the embassy in Singapore DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION FOR CAMBODIA is handled by the embassy in Vietnam (Hanoi) DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR CHINA Embassy of Ireland 3 Ri Tan Dong lu Chaoyang District Beijing 100600 Tel: + 86 - 10 - 6532 - 2691/2914 Email: beijing@dfa.ie www.embassyofireland.cn Ambassador: H.E. Paul Kavanagh CONSUL GENERAL OF IRELAND Shanghai,Suite 700A, Shanghai Centre, 1376 Nanjing Road West 200040 Shanghai China Tel: 00 86 21 6279 8729 Email: shanghai@dfa.ie www.irishconsulateshanghai.cn Consul General: H.E. Austin Gormley CONSUL OF IRELAND Hong Kong,Suite 1408, Two Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Hong Kong Tel: +852 2527 4897 Email: info@consulateofireland.hk www.consulateofireland.hk Consul General: H.E. Peter Ryan DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR INDIA Embassy of Ireland C17 Malcha Marg Chanyakapuri, New Delhi 110021 Tel: +91 11 49403200 www.irelandinindia.com Ambassador: H.E. Feilim McLaughlin DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR INDONESIA Embassy of Ireland CEO Suite 17th Floor Indonesia Stock Exchange Tower 2 Jalan Surdiman, Kav 52-3 Jakarta 12190 Tel: + 62 21 5291 7446 Email: jakartaem@dfa.ie Ambassador: H.E. Kyle O’Sullivan DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR JAPAN Embassy of Ireland Ireland House 5F 2-10-7 Kojimachi Chiyoda-Ku Tokyo 102-0083 Tel: +813 3263 0695 www.embassyofireland.jp Ambassador: H.E. Anne Barrington DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR REPUBLIC OF KOREA Embassy of Ireland 13F Leema Building, 146-1 Soosong-dong, Chongro-gu Seoul, Korea 110-140 Tel: +82 2 721 7200

www.embassyofireland.or.kr Ambassador: H.E. Aingeal O’Donoghue DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION FOR LAOS is handled by the embassy in Vietnam Hanoi DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR MALAYSIA Embassy of Ireland The Amp Walk 218 Jalan Ampang 50450 Kuala Lumpur Tel: +60-3-2161-2963 www.embassyofireland.my Ambassador: H.E. Declan Kelly DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION FOR MONGOLIA is handled by the embassy in China (Beijing) DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION FOR THE PHILIPPINES is handled by the embassy in Singapore Honorary Consul General 3/F Max’x building 70 Jupiter St Bel Air 1 Makati City 1209 Metro Manila Tel: 00 63 2 896 4668 Email: irishcon@pldtdsl.net Honorary Consul General: H.E. Noreen Trota DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR SINGAPORE Embassy of Ireland Ireland House 541 Orchard Road Liat Towers 8th Floor Singapore 238881 Tel: +65 6238 7616 www.embassyofireland.sg Ambassador: H.E Geoffrey Keating DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR THAILAND Embassy of Ireland Athenee Tower, 23rd Floor 63 Wireless Road Lumpini Pathumwan Bangkok 10330 Tel: +66 2 632 6720 Email: info@irelandinthailand.com www.irelandinthailand.com Ambassador: H.E. Brendan Rogers DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR INFORMATION FOR VIETNAM Embassy of Ireland 2nd Floor, Sentinel Place, 41A Ly To, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi Vietnam Tel: + 84 4 3974 3291 www.embassyofireland.vn Ambassador: H.E. Damien Cole

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CULTURE

Chairman of the Asian County Board in Korea Joe Trolan explains the role of the GAA in Asia

UCD International took part in the annual Asian Gaelic Games in KL in 2014

Game on RECENT developments in Asia have led to a boost to the GAA in Asia and the Irish brand itself.

Last year and 2015 have shown an exciting way forward for Ireland in Asia. New GAA clubs have started in Myanmar, Malaysia and China, and the more established clubs have grown in relation to adults playing and in youth sports.

There has also been a greater connectivity between the GAA, the Irish Government and embassies, the GAA clubs and local businesses i s el e o el el n ’s e ut tion in ultitude of countries.

It has been a year where the Asian County Board (ACB) has seen an influx of Irish to many countries and these newly arrived immigrants have helped to establish new clubs.

The Myanmar club was founded in early 2014 and has steadily grown in size among the expat community. Johor Malaysia was founded by a group of expats who were relocated to Johor Bahru

by Kerry Group and they took the 2014 Fexco Asian Gaelic Games (AGG) by storm, beating many established clubs. This year it is going from strength to strength.

In 2015 a new club is being formed in Guangzhou China through a connection with the local university and its twinning university in Ireland. Certainly, it seems that the GAA is growing and doing so by increasing connections with Irish businesses and universities.

Additionally, this year the ACB will be inviting Queens University Belfast to attend the AGG to complement University College Dublin and in doing so creating a university connection in both the north

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and south of Ireland.

The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, through its partnership with the GAA, has allocated funds to many local GAA clubs to help promote Irish culture and the Irish brand. This is a very successful partnership and one that has helped to increase the visibility of Ireland throughout Asia.

Of course, it would be remiss not to mention the historically recent GAA World Games in Abu Dhabi. Asia sent three teams to participate in the event and three more teams to participate in the Middle East tournament being held at the same time. The event was a huge success for the international GAA and its members as publicity of the event spanned across the world.

Having teams from South America, South Africa and the other established international boards highlighted that the growth of the GAA is just beginning and will continue for a long time. The event, sponsored by Etihad, was so successful that I believe this will be the first of many and will give Irish businesses the opportunity to penetrate many different overseas markets.

From the early beginnings of the first AGG in 1996, to the establishment of the ACB in 2006, to participation in the 2015 GAA World Games Asia, there is an ever increasing opportunity for Irish people, Irish businesses and Irish educational institutions.

The increasing profile of the GAA internationally and the established Irish diaspora will only help the potential of any future international business or educational opportunities.

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CULTURE

Fionnuala Croke, director of the Chester Beatty Library and chair of the Asia-Europe Museum Association explains the well established relationships with cultural institutions in Asia

HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand during her recent visit to the Chester Beatty Library

Connecting collections THE Chester Beatty Library has extensive East Asian collections representing cultures from India in the south-west to Japan in the north-east and from Mongolia in the north-west to Sumatra in the south-east.

We have well established relationships with institutions in Asia because of the world-renowned importance of these collections and the high standing of our professional staff.

Through our public programmes the Chester Beatty engages with Irish audiences and international visitors to the country.

In addition, we have carved a unique role among the national cultural institutions by reaching out to the existing and emerging communities in Ireland. By drawing upon and interpreting our extraordinary collections, we have sought to engage and forge relationships with the newest members of our society.

As director of the Chester Beatty, I am the current chair of the Asia-Europe Museum Network (ASEMUS), a cross-cultural network of museums from ASEM countries which possess collections of Asian heritage. The Chester Beatty was a founding member of ASEMUS and our role in this network provides us with a further, more formal conduit to develop and expand our activities.

The objectives of ASEMUS are two-fold: to promote mutual understanding between the peoples of Asia and Europe through collaborative museum-based cultural activity; and to stimulate and

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facilitate the sharing and use of museum collections.

The activities of ASEMUS primarily take the form of networking and the exchange of information, personnel and skills via a biennial general meeting and conference and the development of its website. It has also successfully created and implemented the ASEMUS Educational Exchange Outreach Programme. On a modest budget, the member museums manage the exchange of museum educators amongst ASEMUS partner museums from Asia and Europe.

Another project of ASEMUS is the Virtual Collection of Asian Masterpieces (VCM), of which the Chester Beatty is also a founder member and trustee. ASEMUS VCM is an online collection of over 2,100 images and information on Asian masterpieces from more than 70 museums in Asia and Europe. Its strength and uniqueness lies in the accompanying descriptions in English, thus providing s o ont’ o n s lle si n useu s to n inte n tion l audience.

In addition to the permanent displays of its own collections, Sacred Traditions and Arts of the Book, the Chester Beatty is currently showing Seven Treasures: Japanese Cloisonné Enamels from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, on display until 14 June 2015.

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EU JAPAN EPA

TRUE PARTNERSHIP WITH

JAPAN Asia Matters will hold its third annual EU Asia Top Economist Round Table (TERT) in Tokyo in November 2015 ON 13 November 2015, Asia Matters will hold the Eighth EU Asia Top Economist Round Table (TERT) at the prestigious Keio University in Tokyo, Japan. The event will be the third nnu l o o unning s t o si tte s’ si e ies events. si tte s’ sign tu e event it s been el in Dublin, Beijing and Tokyo to date and has featured prestigious speakers from heads of state to trade ministers to CEOs of top EU and Asian companies.

Given the importance of Japan as a strategic partner for the EU and the depth of economic ties, Asia Matters annually holds TERT in Tokyo underlining the latest economic trends driving the EU-Japan relationship and the future business opportunities and challenges. e initi tive is in tne s i it t e tu ies nstitute in J n t e J n ent e o n ust i l oo e tion ei i Doyukai, the European Business Council in Japan and JETRO, with support from key Japanese government stakeholders, the eleg tion n t e is e b ss on t e g oun .

Martin Murray, executive director, Asia Matters advises that the timing of the third Tokyo TERT is important given the desired conclusion of the EU Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) at the end of 2015.

As with all agreements, there will be the necessary challenge to combine both speed and substance in successfully concluding the negotiations. Both European and Japanese companies have reiterated the need for a comprehensive and ambitious outcome of EU-Japan trade negotiations.

As a pillar of economic and political stability in Asia, Japan is and will remain an essential trading partner for the EU. The EU strategy towards Japan must be to deepen this valued trading relationship and the EU-Japan EPA is the perfect vehicle to do so.

With the tenth round of negotiations on the agreement og essing n t e J n u it t ing l e on 2 May, there is now a strong momentum to resolve the non-tariff measures (NTMs) which constitute barriers in both markets.

The adoption of a Regulatory Cooperation Joint Document in

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ge

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tt e1 t nnu l eeting o t e J n n ust i l oli Di logue b DG G n to utu ll e ognise standards in a significant number of product areas will drive regulatory cooperation between the EU and Japan.

This will enlarge the existing cooperation to new areas such as robotics, construction and medical devices. The fourth sectorto-sector meeting between BusinessEurope and Keidanren concluded that an ambitious EU-Japan EPA/FTA along with the ns tl nti e n nvest ent tne s i n t e Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) could serve as an important conduit to global rules. The agreement could also lay the foundation for expanding trade and investment opportunities in third countries, including Asian growth markets.

The Tokyo TERTs to date have brought together speakers from top EU and Japanese business and government leaders such as Philips, Nissan, BNP Paribas, Nomura, Barclays, itib n n t e si n Develo ent B n nstitute JETRO and the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The 2014 edition of the Tokyo TERT examined the business realities in promoting greater EU Japan trade and investment.

This included the role of Abenomics in reforming the Japanese economy for more sustainable growth. These fiscal, monetary and structural reforms aim to revitalise the Japanese economy by tackling stagnant growth, addressing the impact of major demographic shifts, doubling foreign direct investment by 2020 and encouraging export growth through a wide network of free trade agreements.

The Tokyo TERT also looked at the latest developments in the Japan-EU EPA negotiations due to close by the end of 2015, which is expected to increase EU exports to Japan by 33pc and Japanese exports by 23pc. Though challenges remain with NTMs and regulatory issues on both sides.

A major trend that emerged from the event related to the opportunities for both Japanese and EU companies to access global trade networks through greater business partnership.

Reports from the event are available on www.asiamatters.eu.

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Left to right: Stuart Kennedy, Chris Quinn, Gerry Thornton

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