By Business & Finance 
Martin Shanahan, CEO, IDA Ireland
IBM’s newly released 2015 edition of its annual Global Location Trends report has ranked Ireland as the top country in the world for quality and value of investments for the fourth year in a row.
The country is continuing to attract investment projects in industries characterised by high knowledge intensity and economic value added, such as life sciences and information and communication technology (ICT).
Ireland leads the group followed by Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Lithuania and the Netherlands. In addition, Ireland is in the top four of global destination countries by estimated jobs – per million inhabitants.
Martin Shanahan, CEO, IDA Ireland, said: “Ireland’s position as the top ranking destination for quality and value of investments is based on global measures of productivity, knowledge intensity and occupational profile composition represented by wages and skills, and highlights the value and exceptionally strong contribution that foreign direct investment makes towards Ireland’s economy.”
The high quality and value of recent announcements in the life sciences and ICT sectors can be illustrated by a number of recent announcements: Apple’s decision to invest €850m in a data centre in Athenry, Galway creating 300 jobs in multiple phases; and Alexion’s announcement its intention to invest €450m in a new biologics manufacturing facility in Blanchardstown and create 200 full-time jobs.
“Competition for FDI projects has never been as intense. IDA Ireland will continue to target blue-chip companies and the next wave of high growth companies in the coming years and capitalise on Ireland’s position as one of the top destinations in the world for Foreign Direct Investment,” concluded Martin Shanahan.
