Hewlett Packard’s announcement that it is to create 105 highly skilled jobs in Galway shows this city has the ability to attract significant foreign direct investment despite the difficult economic climate.
This is the view of Galway West Fianna Fáil TD Frank Fahey who welcomed the announcement of the job creations at Hewlett Packard on Monday.
The news comes less than two weeks after US telecommunications firm Genband announced it would be investing €8 million and creating 100 jobs over the next three years in its new international headquarters in Galway.
Hewlett Packard will be recruiting computer software engineers and managers from graduate to PhD level to work on global information technology projects, such as in software engineering, testing, and development, at its European Software Centre in Ballybrit.
The news has been welcomed by Fianna Fáil Galway West TD Frank Fahey, who said Hewlett Packard is putting Galway “at the centre of its innovation activity”.
“These are high-end positions of great value to the economy,” he said. “Today’s jobs’ announcement reaffirms Galway’s position a centre of excellence for research and development.”
Dep Fahey also feels that the announcement has wider implications for the Irish economy as a whole.
“That a multinational firm of this size has chosen to expand in Ireland is a testament to our competitiveness,” said Dep Fahey. “It proves our ability to attract significant foreign direct investment despite the difficult economic climate.”
Green senator Niall Ó Brolcháin has also welcomed the news and is encouraging young people to consider computer software and engineering courses at university.
“Galway remains a prime location for international high-tech investment,” he said. “It’s a vote of confidence both in our highly-skilled population and in the opportunities that establishing a base in Galway offers.”
Sen Niall Ó Brolcháin said that despite the economic situation, inward investment is continuing and he believes more companies will be establishing operations here, particularly in the high-tech and green-tech sectors.
