Irish Rural Link (IRL), the national network representing the interest of rural communities, will attend the National Economic Dialogue (NED) today (Monday June 12) at Dublin Castle.
The theme of this year’s NED is ‘The Economy in 2030: Enabling a Sustainable Future for All’.
The recent Census 2022 figures, published at the end of May, showed a continued concentration of young people and quality jobs in the east of the country, especially in Dublin and greater Dublin area.
Irish Rural Link
According to IRL, while there has been an increase in remote and hybrid working since the pandemic, it can only be part of the solution to more regional balance.
Attracting quality jobs and supporting innovation to all regions of the country will be needed for a sustainable future, it has argued.
To ensure sustainable and thriving rural communities, IRL said people must now be able to live close to where they work and work close to where they live, if everyone can have a sustainable future in Ireland.
Lifting people out of poverty must now be a priority of the government and subsequent governments, IRL stated.
“Poverty excludes people from fully participating in society. Over 5% of the population are now in consistent poverty, which is an increase from 12 months ago,” the organisation stated.
“The government [has] committed to reducing consistent poverty to 2% by 2025. Social welfare payments and supports for those in low-income jobs must be increased to ensure people have an adequate income to afford a minimum standard of living and for the 2% target as well as the UN SDG [sustainable development goal] on the eradication of poverty be achieved.”
IRL said that it acknowledges that an adequate income must be coupled with access to essential services for people to have a minimum standard of living and to be able to fully participate in society.
“We know that households on low income in rural areas have higher living costs than their peer urban households, mainly due to higher transport costs,” it stated.
“Households in rural areas need a car, and in most cases two cars. Investment in public transport and local link services will be needed if all people in society are to have a sustainable future.
“At present, there is little or no choice for people in rural areas when it comes to public transport – and this excludes marginalised and vulnerable groups – further from fully participating in society.”
The transition to greener and more digital society provides ample opportunities for rural areas to be the leaders in this transition, according to the rural organisation.
However, it has argued that it must be fair and just and the availability of upskilling and re-skilling opportunities will be essential to ensure quality jobs are created and people can move quickly into new jobs and those who are furthest behind are supported first.