Knowledge - The Key to an Economic Transformation ?

How long have we been talking about developing a Knowledge Economy in Northern Ireland ? Do we know what a successful Knowledge Economy looks like ? Even if we have some idea, do we know just how important it could be to achieving an economic transformation in Northern Ireland ? Do we know how we measure up against other regions ?

Well... we have now found out the answers to these and many other important questions in the pursuit of a Knowledge Economy. Thursday 27th October saw the launch of the Northern Ireland Knowledge Economy Index - Baseline Report, published by the Northern Ireland Science Park and NISP CONNECT in partnership with Northern Bank. Representing a lot of detailed work it analyses exactly what we mean by a knowledge economy and defines the various metrics against which we need to measure our collective performance. It gives an honest assessment of where we are across key metrics, be they good or bad, and gives useful comparisons with other regions in the UK and further afield. While it shows progress in some areas, equally it highlights where we need to improve. More importantly it spells out the scale of the opportunity that faces us as an economic region, if we can collectively up our game and raise our ambitions. Up to 50,00 new jobs are on offer if we were to become a leading region in the UK for knowledge industries. Not to be sniffed at in the current climate.

There is no doubt that the potential is huge, not only to add thousands of jobs directly, but many more indirectly in various supply chain and support services opportunities. Experience elsewhere shows the exponential positive impact that knowledge economies can create for everyone and we must learn from the best regions in the world.

While the information contained in the Index will be very important in its own right, it is what we do with it that is most important. The Index will ultimately be used to set targets across all the main metrics for the next 5, 10, 15 and 20 years and rightly become the focus for all those involved in the knowledge sector. The time for talking is over and what we now need is a concerted effort from all interested parties - public and private sectors - to work collectively towards realising the huge potential that this Report defines.

We look forward to the debate, closely followed by the action !