Mayo venue for launch of WDC's €50m strategy to drive growth in the west and northwest

The Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, Dara Calleary, has officially launched the Western Development Commission’s new five-year strategy entitled Unlocking Potential, Driving Change: A Strategy for Regional Growth and Collaboration 2025-2029 in Ballina.

The strategy outlines a bold and practical roadmap to position Ireland’s west and northwest as national leaders in innovation, digital transformation and inclusive growth, with collaboration at its core.

Rather than a reinvention, the strategy marks the next phase in the WDC’s evolution, building on over 25 years of impact across enterprise, investment and community development. It reflects a confident, tested regional model, now entering its most ambitious chapter.

Launching the strategy, Minister Calleary said: “This is a roadmap for real impact. It shows how strategic collaboration and local leadership can turn national ambition into local opportunity.

“The western region is not waiting for change – it plans to shape it. The strategy aligns with Our Rural Future – the government's rural development policy – and reinforces this government’s commitment to balanced regional growth, innovation and inclusive economic opportunity across Ireland.”

“This is not a new beginning – it’s the next step,” said Allan Mulrooney, CEO of the WDC. “We’ve co-created a strategy that is both ambitious and grounded in what already works. In the years ahead, talent, not geography, will shape the west’s future. But talent needs the right conditions to thrive.

“That’s why this strategy focuses on investing in high-potential companies, supporting resilient communities, and testing scalable solutions for rural Ireland. From AI to climate action, social enterprise to creative industries, we’re building the platforms to turn regional potential into long-term impact.”

The strategy is structured around four interconnected growth drivers, each designed to deliver real outcomes.

They are: Heritage – safeguarding cultural and natural assets while fostering innovation rooted in place; Horizons – embracing global opportunities and scaling sectors like medtech, renewable energy, agritech, and the creative economy; Harnessing Talent – supporting flexible work, digital skills, AI readiness, and inclusive careers across all life stages; Hubs – enabling collaboration and connectivity through a dynamic network of physical and digital infrastructure.

To translate ambition into measurable impact, the strategy sets out a suite of key targets for 2025-2029, including the following:

- Investing €50 million in the region – €35 million through the WDC’s evergreen investment fund and €15 million from EU funding sources

- Supporting the creation of 5,000 jobs through enterprise and regional development projects

- Reaching 400 connected hubs and evolving the network as a platform to deliver AI upskilling, digital transformation, and climate action directly into communities

- Delivering over 100 high-impact projects across SMEs, social enterprises, and the creative sector through the investment fund and supporting a further 1,000 SMEs through EU-funded programmes - Reaching an annual audience of one million through initiatives that globally promote the western region

COHESION

Eugene Cummins, chairperson of the WDC, said: “Unlocking regional potential takes more than investment, it takes cohesion.

“This strategy is a product of deep collaboration across sectors and communities. It reframes rural Ireland not as the periphery, but as a place of real and rising potential.”

Over the next five years, the WDC will work closely with government departments, local authorities, enterprise agencies, communities, and academic institutions to ensure the region progresses as a unified whole while recognising that different areas, particularly the northwest, require tailored approaches.

In a time of rapid change, where the way we work, climate resilience, and evolving technologies are reshaping every region, Unlocking Potential, Driving Change lays the foundation for inclusive, resilient, and future-focused growth.

It is a strategy that brings policy, people and possibility into alignment for the west, and for the country.

The Western Development Commission operates under the auspices of the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht.