Seán Kenny (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 227: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation if he will report on his recent trade mission to India and Saudi Arabia; and the number of jobs that are expected to be created from the trade mission. [11733/11]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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On this recent Trade Mission, organised by Enterprise Ireland, I led a group of 22 Irish companies to India. – 11 Educational bodies and 11 others, mainly in the IT, telecommunications, and construction sectors. For the Saudi Arabia programme, I had 13 leading Irish universities and Institutes of Technology and 10 construction companies involved. The Trade Mission has been organised because of the high growth potential for Irish exports to both countries and as a direct response to growing interest in the market among Irish companies. The key objective of the mission was to highlight the excellence of Ireland's higher education offering and the product and service capability of Irish companies generally.

Both countries are recognised as high growth potential markets for Irish exporters in the recently launched strategy and action plan for Irish Trade, Tourism and Investment to 2015, entitled Trading and Investing in a Smart Economy Strategy.

India is rapidly transforming into a global economic powerhouse and there has been a doubling of Enterprise Ireland client company exports to that country over the last three years. With a population of 1.2bn India is forecast to become a major world economic power by 2020. Its shift to a more open economic policy in the 1990s, dismantling trade barriers and welcoming foreign investment, has resulted in unprecedented economic growth and a more business-friendly environment. India is the 7th largest country in the world and the 4th largest economy in terms of purchasing power. It now ranks next to China in terms of the pace of economic development. Economic growth has averaged more than 7% per year since 1997.

In relation to Saudi Arabia, Irish exports to that country have been growing very strongly and we are keen to build on these successes. Saudi Arabia has by far the largest population (approximately 27million) in the Gulf region and this is growing rapidly, exacerbating serious infrastructural deficits that match newly available Irish supply capability. Crucially, that country can readily fund all of its development needs and their administration has recently announced considerable additional funding for social spending and physical infrastructure. This offers additional opportunities for Irish companies. Surging oil prices are ensuring continued financial security.

During the mission, I was involved in a range of promotional and networking events for the participants, including leading the Irish companies in key corporate presentations to promote their products and services to potential partners and buyers. In addition, I met key political leaders, including relevant Ministers and also corporate decision makers, in both countries, to endorse and promote Irish companies and Irish products and services.

Given the particular focus on educational services in both countries, I formally launched the "Education in Ireland" brand in Saudi Arabia, from where we currently have over 400 students currently studying in our Higher Education Institutions, as well as the same number of Saudi students studying English language in Ireland. In addition I launched a new 'trusted agents' programme to promote Irish higher-level education in India.

The education of both Indian and Saudi students in Irish colleges is an important element in reinforcing the positive trading relationship with these countries and we are keen to further develop this area for our mutual benefit.

Given the gradual lead-in time involved in fully developing new contracts, relationships and links, it is not possible at this stage to specify levels of additional jobs which will arise in the companies and bodies that participated on the mission. However, given the size of both the Indian and Saudi economies, and the growth opportunities in both countries, I believe there is significant job creation potential for Irish companies.