Building Stronger Ties With Belfast, Northern Ireland
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT--Building Stronger Ties With Belfast, Northern Ireland
A delegation from Belfast City Council, Northern Ireland, is visiting Halifax this week to meet with government, business, and academic leaders to build stronger economic ties between the two regions.
"Nova Scotia is delighted to host officials from the city of Belfast. This visit acknowledges a common desire to promote economic growth, encourage development, and foster close cultural ties," said Nova Scotia's Economic Development Minister Ernest Fage. "Trade and investment are often about building strong relationships, and this visit will foster the ties necessary to build international business relationships with Northern Ireland."
"Belfast has always been an outward looking city willing to learn from other experiences and take the best advice possible in developing its economic framework, and this working visit to Halifax is part of that," said Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Tom Ekin. "Halifax is a great example of a small city which has made the most of its assets, having successfully developed its port, created well-known environmental industry clusters, world- class universities and developed a working waterfront for the use of all -- business, leisure and tourism."
The delegation is being led by Mr. Ekin. It includes several other city councillors as well as officers responsible for economic and business development efforts within Belfast City Council. Senior representatives of Investment Belfast, the Northern Ireland Science Park, and one of Northern Ireland's top universities -- the University of Ulster -- are also part of the delegation.
The Belfast delegation is meeting with Mr. Fage, Halifax Regional Municipality Mayor Peter Kelly, and senior leaders from Nova Scotia Business Inc., the Greater Halifax Partnership, the Halifax Port Authority, and the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. There will also be a strong emphasis on linking representatives from the academic and technology fields in Belfast with academic, research and development leaders and organizations in Nova Scotia, including InNOVACorp, Dalhousie University, the Association of Atlantic Universities, Acadia University, the Telecom Applications and Research Alliance, and Genome Atlantic.
Belfast City Council will also explore Halifax Regional Municipality's efforts to promote a clean environment through its eco-friendly programs, developments and industries. The delegation will meet with representatives of the Eco-Efficiency Centre in Dartmouth to review the operation of Burnside Industrial Park, eastern Canada's largest industrial park, and a model for research on the environmental management of industrial parks. They will also visit the Irving Environmental Sciences and Research Centre at Acadia University in Wolfville.
"We have been looking at the possibility of developing an environmental business park for about two years -- the North Foreshore waste disposal site in the city -- and now we have the chance to see a world-class example at work and learn from the people who run it about its success," said Pat McCarthy, deputy chair of Belfast City Council's economic development subcommittee. "This development ties in completely with the council's aim to recycle waste and create a positive environment for business in our city."