Tourism, Creative Ireland and Gaeltacht projects to be supported under the Government’s Shared Island Initiative

The Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin, and Minister of State, Jack Chamber, today welcomed the announcement of the latest round of projects to be supported by the Government's Shared Island initiative. The projects being developed include three from across the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media with investment of over €15m.

These are:

Tourism : €7.6m for a new all-island tourism brand collaboration and marketing initiative to be administered by the Tourism agencies on a cross-border basis. The vision of the proposal is to connect the Causeway Coastal Route and the Wild Atlantic Way in the North West in such a way that the visitor is motivated to stay longer and spend more thereby bringing greater economic benefit to the region. The two routes are already internationally known, but there is great opportunity to bring these two assets together to improve the overall performance of tourism to the island of Ireland and create international marketing standout. The project will also bring benefits to areas that are in the hinterland of these two routes bringing new opportunities to these areas to create lasting economic benefits.

Creative Ireland : €6m for a Shared Island dimension to the Government's Creative Ireland Programme 2023-2027. The initiative will seek to deploy creativity on a shared island basis to:

• increase opportunities for cross-community cultural and creative initiatives between children and young people;
• support local authorities to enhance networks of creativity in support of vibrant and inclusive people-to-people and community-to-community partnerships;
• position Ireland as a global leader in demonstrating the value of creativity and mental wellbeing, and
• deepen collaborations for a more environmentally and socially sustainable island.

Gaeltacht : €2m for new cross-border Irish language and Ulster-Scots language, culture and heritage projects, including funding for the development of community-run facilities and cross-community cultural events. This will complement and build on broader support by Government for the Irish language on an all-island basis through Foras na Gaeilge and in Northern Ireland, as part of commitments under the New Decade New Approach, and support for the Ulster-Scots language, culture and heritage through increasing awareness across the island.

Welcoming the announcement, Minister Martin said:

"These proposals will help both to deliver very worthwhile projects but also help to foster increased North-South cooperation. The tourism project will enhance the already strong cooperation that exits in the sector on the island, with particular benefits for the North West. The Creative Ireland projects will provide welcome opportunities for communities North and South to work together on cultural and creative initiatives. I am delighted that there will be a focus on young people in these projects too."

Minister of State Jack Chambers, added:

"This additional investment recognising the importance of the Irish language as well as Ulster Scots is a very positive step towards further development of a shared understanding of our cultures and traditions. This will be enhanced by cross-cultural exchanges. I look forward to continued cooperation on language and culture on an all-island basis in the years to come."