Feargal Quinn (Independent)

The Minister of State is very welcome. She knows this House well. We spent a number of years here together and it is great to see her in her new job. She has obviously taken it on with enthusiasm and is full of the necessary confidence.

I spoke this morning to former MEP Eoin Ryan, our representative on the board of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. He told me not enough people knew about that bank, yet Irish taxpayers are contributing to it. He stated the bank had offices in many places that it would love to be used. He asked us to ensure Irish exporters used them. Irish taxpayers are entitled to use the services. The bank has offices all over the former Soviet Union and recently opened offices in Tunisia and some other north African countries. It would be a shame not to use these facilities in countries with which we may not have full diplomatic relations.

I wrote an article in the Irish Independent last week in which I raised the massive issue of Ireland's chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, OSCE. When we take over the chairmanship for one year, starting on 1 January, our doing so will present us with a significant opportunity. The OSCE is what is known as a regional security organisation. It has 56 members dealing with political, military, economic and environmental issues, as well as the human dimension which covers a range of areas, including human rights and the holding of free elections. Given that Ireland, as chairman, will be the focus of this massive and influential organisation, we can use the opportunity to find new international partners for Irish businesses. Given that we will be the focus of a massive and influential organisation, we can use the opportunity to leverage new international partners for Irish businesses. In particular, Ireland's chairmanship of the OSCE will allow us to reach out to states that are increasing in wealth and importance, such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. It must be kept in mind that we do not have resident representatives in these countries. Irish companies currently active or interested in doing business with those countries can expect better name recognition for Ireland during 2012. We can also look to secure investment from these growing economies. Kazakhstan, for example, is one of the world's top 20 oil producers. Tony Blair is now advising the Government of Kazakhstan in regard to increasing its trade links with the UK. Other OSCE countries with limited supplies of natural resources, such as Georgia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, offer huge potential in terms of investment in their services industries.

Irish exports are our strong point. The fact that our exports to Kazakhstan have increased by 25% over the past year indicates the potential for further growth. Our chairmanship of the OSCE will gives us greater influence in making contacts and securing trade with other member states. If we are able to achieve progress in resolving the ongoing conflicts in Georgia, Moldova and Azerbaijan by using our experience of the Northern Ireland peace process, we can expect to increase our name recognition and ability to foster trade links.

Unfortunately, the naive belief that everybody loves Ireland persists. Foreign businessmen and diplomats have pointed out to me that such a belief is far from true. Ireland's reputation has taken a severe blow from the economic, financial and political woes of recent years. We are doing our best to change this reputation but it has not helped that certain politicians touted Ireland as the model everyone should follow during the boom. I was one of those who had a great experience in explaining to people about how we moved from the bottom to the top of the pile. The reasons I outlined included social partnership, which we are shy to mention at present, investments in education and our tax rates. Ten or 15 years ago I argued in countries such as Argentina, Brazil and Panama that we had done a good job but I realise now that I was not as right as I believed. Our chairmanship of the OSCE and the EU Presidency in 2013 will help to restore our reputation as a sound and reliable member of the international community and, hopefully, boost trade. Tourists from countries that were not aware of our existence heretofore are expected to spend millions of euro in Ireland during 2012 as a direct result of our chairmanship of the OSCE.

Can the Minister of State outline what her Department is doing to take advantage of this opportunity? What business opportunities have been identified and how does she plan to inform Irish businesses about them? If she has not already done so, I implore her to start identifying the opportunities. The OSCE has limited name recognition in the western part of Europe but it is widely known in the rapidly growing post-Soviet states.

I have previously spoken on the issue of training diplomats to increase trade. My granddaughter, who turns 20 this month, was born and lives in France. She is spending her second year in university in China because she wants to be a diplomat in the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is not something we do in Ireland. We send our diplomats to China, Japan or Korea for three or four years when they are in their 40s or 50s but they never really learn the languages of these countries fluently. French diplomats are prepared to steep themselves in the cultures and languages of the countries to which they are deployed. We should encourage a cadre of young people in their early 20s to join our diplomatic service and live in countries like China, Japan or Korea. If they can steep themselves in the cultures of these countries, when they are appointed as ambassadors in their 40s and 50s we will be more likely to secure trade and investment. We are not looking far enough ahead, particularly given the developments occurring in places like central Asia and China.

I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to discuss these matters. She will find that we can offer useful information. I apologise if I have usurped other Senators' time.