Newsletter Q1 2023

Dear Members,

2023 has started on a high note with NetworkIrlande now recognised as an official Chamber of Commerce - La Chambre de Commerce et de l'Industrie Franco-Irlandaise - to be precise. We believe that this new accreditation will better define our activity and objectives for those who are not familiar with the network and it will undoubtedly give our association further distinction and validation. Although the NetworkIrlande name will not change, our tagline will reflect our new status going forward.

The good news continues as pioneer member Staycity have joined our Member to Member advantage program with a very special offer for fellow NetworkIrlande members - considering the number of travellers among us this is sure to be of great interest. Staycity properties, which operate under the Staycity Aparthotels and the premium Wilde Aparthotels brands, appeal to business and leisure travellers offering central city locations, well-equipped, modern apartments and fantastic customer service and facilities in numerous cities across France, Ireland and the whole of Europe. Full details in your member portal. 

As Saint Patrick's day draws near you will find details in this newsletter of some of the events taking place in France to mark the occasion. We would also encourage you to check out the new member section of the newsletter and remind you that you can reach out to any fellow members via their contact details in our member directory.

Your NetworkIrlande Team

UPCOMING EVENTS

St. Patrick's Day Trade Reception

Thursday, March 16th, 2023

On the occassion of the 2023 Saint Patrick's Day celebrations we are delighted to invite members to a trade reception at the Embassy of Ireland to France on March 16th in the presence of Mr. Dara Calleary TD, Minister of State for Trade Promotion and Digital Transformation and H.E. Mr. Niall Burgess, Ambassador of Ireland to France.

With less than 200 days to go until the 2023 Rugby World Cup kicks off, rugby will be at the centre of our St. Patrick's Day trade reception this year. The reception will begin with a panel discussion featuring a number of Irish rugby players who have plied their trade in France. Ireland international prop Linda Djougang, who played with ASM Romagnat for a season before returning to Leinster last year, and Toulon forwards coach James Coughlan, who began a successful coaching career in France in 2017 after playing for two seasons in the back-row with Pau, will discuss their experiences of playing and coaching in France, look ahead to the conclusion of the 2023 Six Nations Championship and share their predictions for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

This reception is organised in collaboration with the Embassy of Ireland and our colleagues at Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and Tourism Ireland.

Please note that attendance at this reception is strictly by invitation only, registration is now closed.

SAVE THE DATE

Wednesday, April 19th, 2023

A not to be misssed event concentrating on decarbonisation and strategies to transition from a high carbon past to a low carbon future. We are honoured to welcome Mr. Jean Jouzel, the prominent glaciologist and climatologist, vice president of the scientific group GIEC (Groupe d'experts intergouvernemental sur l'évolution du climat) when, together with Al Gore, it became co-laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. Mr. Jouzel was also part of the French preparation group of the COP21, contributing to the 2015 Paris Agreement. Mr. Jouzel's presentation will be followed by a roundtable discussion with a panel of cross-sector experts moderated by Bastien Nossek of Carbon 4.

Mark your agendas, further information and full registrtaion details will follow shortly.

Recent Events

Lunch & Learn, February 16th, 2023

A great turnout at our Q1 Lunch & Learn despite the vagaries of the French transport system on an official strike day! Many thanks to all who attended and in particular to Tom Callaghan of business member C-Risk who enlightened us on the importance of identifying and assessing risk in any organisation. Cyber risk today is basically business risk as it pertains to so many facets of any business or entity, yet is often insufficiently identified and inaccurately quantified in the backdrop of a regulatory system that is not necessarily clear. It was fascinating to get Tom's expert insights on the subject and hear of his company's solutions in this complex space.
A special thanks also to pioneer member Grand Port Maritime de Dunkerque who were getting into the 'green' spirit and kindly gifted specially commissioned St Patrick's Day pens to all attendees!

DAVY presentation on Ireland's Political and Economic Outlook, January 18th, 2023

The 2023 agenda kicked off with perfect timing this January as we explored the current economic and political situations in Ireland and what the coming year may have in store. Davy Chief Economist, Conall MacCoille, presented quite a positive economic outlook for Ireland. Despite housing issues creating a certain negativity, Ireland's favourable demographics, its continuing attractiveness to foreign direct investment and its defensive export sector make for a strong economic performance overall. The housing crisis is also putting pressure on the political front, however Professor David Farrell of UCD School of Politics and International Relations believes the current Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, Green coalition is likely to go full term. He sees tentative signs of Ireland's electorate moving to the left, however no party is currently proposing tax increases to fund the expansion of the state. As regards Sinn Féin who have been consistently leading opinion polls since the 2020 election, various events and investigations have been putting them under pressure in recent months and there is a real sense of resistance and push back from the other parties. 
We would like to thank pioneer member DAVY for their collaboration on this event, in particular Conall and David for their expertise and insights. A very special thanks also to pioneer member Axway for hosting the event in their wonderful meeting facilities in central Paris.
Thanks also to all our members who braved the looming transport strikes to attend. For those who could not be with us on the evening or those who have expressed an interest in reviewing the event, you may request a recording of the presentation at admin@networkirlande.com.

Annual Christmas Reception, December 13th, 2022

Over 80 members braved the sub-zero temperatures to meet at the Embassy of Ireland in Paris to round off what was a very busy, successful and progressive year for the network. Guests were welcomed by Owen Feeney, Deputy Ambassador of Ireland to France, who echoed the words of the Taoiseach during his recent speech at our annual business awards ceremony in talking about the vibrancy of trade relations between Ireland and France and how the ties between our two countries are growing ever stronger. Neil Curtis then spoke for the Board of NetworkIrlande as he thanked the Ambassador and the whole team at the Embassy for their unwavering support and promotion of the network. Neil also reflected on what we have achieved together during the last 12 months - a record number of events during 2022 but also record levels of attendance and thanked all members for their exceptional engagement and support this year.  A special thanks was also made to Kingspan, sponsors of the event who were represented on the evening by Guillaume Bihanic of Kingspan Logstor. 

Guests of honor for the evening were the management team from Paralympics Ireland and President Eimear Breathnach launched the countdown to the 2024 games - 619 days until we welcome the incredible team of Irish paralympic athletes to Paris!

The delicious wines from Domaine Rolet, expertly presented by Stéphan Flambert, were much appreciated, in particular the vin de paille, perfect for the festive season!

Inauguration NetworkIrlande Lyon, December 7th, 2023

On 7 December, NetworkIrlande, in collaboration with the Consulate General of Ireland in Lyon, hosted our inaugural business networking event in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. 
The event in Lyon was attended by over 30 representatives from Irish and French companies operating in the Auvergne Rhone Alpes region, including Kingspan Global , Smurfit Kappa, Origina, The HR Company, Sanofi, Groupe ADEQUAT, Gerflor, Karpos, Gattefossé, Cheuvreux, Nemera and Lyon airport.
In his keynote speech at the event, the Deputy Ambassador of Ireland in France, Owen Feeney said: "It is wonderful to be here at what is also the inaugural event of Ireland's First Consulate General in France. The Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, and Lyon in particular, are a natural partner for Ireland. We both prize innovation, technology and have a strong and diverse business base and we share an appreciation for each other's culture and people. The Consulate will build on the success of the Enterprise Ireland office opened here in 2019 and create links with the city, metropolitan and regional administrations to work in partnership for Ireland in the region."
He also announced the appointment of Ireland's former Honorary Consul to the region, Mr. Bruno Boccard, as the Honorary President of the new Lyon Chapter of NetworkIrlande.

Further NetworkIrlande events in the region are planned over the coming months, make sure you are signed up to our emails or following us on LinkedIn to stay informed.

Welcome To Our New Members

PIONEER MEMBERS

Rosslare Europort is Ireland's second busiest Ro-Ro Pax port in the Republic of Ireland and is the number 1 port for direct Ro-Ro services to continental Europe.  There are now 36 direct weekly services to and from Rosslare to mainland Europe with 24 of these operating to the ports of Cherbourg , Le Havre and Dunkirk in France. The port has seen its continental freight grow by 400% cumulatively in the last two years and has played a pivotal role as the Ireland's gateway to France for our exporting, importing and tourism industries. Over the next four years Rosslare Europort will see the largest ever investment in port infrastructure that will facilitate the forecasted future growth within our Freight, Passenger and Offshore Renewable Energy sectors.

Glenn Carr , Director Commercial Business Units, Iarnród Éireann / Irish Rail, Port Authority for Rosslare Europort : " We are delighted to further strengthen our links between Rosslare Europort and France through our membership of NetworkIrlande. France is now Ireland's closet EU neighbour and we look forward to working with the team at NetworkIrlande and all their members in supporting the continued success and relationships between both our countries"

For further information contact: Glenn Carr, Glen.Carr@irishrail.ie

Visit www.rosslareeuroport.ie

LinkedIn : @Rosslare Europort

Twitter :  @Rosslareuroport

Instagram : @rosslareeuroport

BUSINESS MEMBER

Tom Dolan, also known as the Flying Irishman, is an Irish sailor competing in the Class Figaro Bénéteau since 2018. He was awarded Irish Sailor of the year in 2021 for his results in 2020, 5th at La Solitaire du Figaro, known as the major Race in the International Solo Sailing Championship, 6th in the French Elite Offshore Championship and 1st in the Vivi Trophy.

Tom Dolan started his career in the class Mini 6.50, since then he has won a series of podiums and he has the best foreign result in the French Figaro circuit since 1998. He has two major Irish sponsors: Smurfit Kappa and Kingspan and several technical sponsors: Dubarry, Guy Cotten and Technique Voile.

For further information please contact tdsailing650@gmail.com or visit https://tomdolanracing.com/

Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/company/tom-dolan-skipper/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/tdsailing

Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/tomdolanracing/

Twitter : https://twitter.com/TomDolan650

Individual Members

David CALLANAN

Margaret DOYLE

Nicolas FAURE

Alicia FOLEY

Eoghan HICKEY

Brid LEFEVERE LAOIDE

Kim McKAYED

Kelly-Marie NOLAN

Robert O'BOYLE

Shauna POWER

John REICHENBACH FINNEGAN

Janet RYAN

Recent Member News

Other News & Events

Foreign Direct Investment in Ireland

IDA Ireland has published its annual report for 2022 reporting that the number of people employed in the multinational sector in Ireland has reached 301,475, the highest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) employment level ever and a 9% increase on 2021, despite the difficult global economic environment

There are now 831 IDA client companies employing 163,653 people located across Ireland's regions, with every region experiencing employment growth in 2022. Further information and access to the report can be found here.

Click here to read the latest briefings in French on the Irish economy from the economic unit at the French Embassy in Dublin.

The most recent France economic policy round-up compiled by the Embassy of Ireland to France can be found here.

Celebrate Saint Patrick's Day in Toulouse this year with a great event lined up on Wednesday, March 15th. Meet representatives from various Irish associations and groups, sporting, cultural and professional, and sign up for a cocktail reception in the evening at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/563516201127.  

The Centre Culturel Irlandais have a full week of festivities lined up to celebrate Saint Patrick with numerous concerts and events between March 15 and 19. The full program of events can be found here .

Our Pioneer Members