TWICE THE SIZE - DIT Update - Dublin Institute of Technology

intervention and investment in public services in areas such as housing, health, and education
have resulted in increasing the cost of living.
The trajectory of change in the BMW region gathered real momentum in 2015, with the UK
finally entering the Euro zone. Given that the north and south of Ireland could now enjoy the
same currency and tax rates it sparked the virtual disintegration of the North/South border, and
increased external investment. In 2016 the final preparations were in place for Dundalk to join
forces with her ‘umbilical cousin’ in Newry. This land mark development was to create the first
‘bi-polar’ city in Ireland, giving both towns the critical mass needed to attract investment, serve
the need of the cross border region, and become a destination in its own right. Local
government funding was increased to concentrate on integrated planning, education and health
service improvements. The success of this initiative paved the way for Dundalk and Newry to
thrive as major urban centres within the Dublin Belfast Corridor, and gave new impetus to the
process of integration. Dundalk’s population has increased at a steady 8 percent growth rate
over the last decade bringing the total number of people to 64,000. During 2016-2020 Dundalk
experienced a mass movement of young Polish families to the region, wishing to create a worklife
balance. Having identified the North East coastline with improved quality of life,
immigration continues at a steady pace. Despite slow integration into the region, the Polish are
generally welcomed, as adding value rather than taking away from the region.
Stable economic conditions along the ‘competitive economic highway’ have enabled the Irish to
experience high standards of living in the East, where almost 50 percent of the population have
settled. Since the turn of the century, economic development has been based on science,
education, and high tech medical and bio-pharma industries. Continuing advances in Dundalk’s
information and communications technology infrastructure have stimulated an information
revolution, with far-reaching consequences for other sectors, such as science, engineering,
medicine, business, manufacturing, the environment, transportation and lifestyle. Graduates
from the privately funded Institutes of Technological Excellence (ITEs) at Dundalk and Newry
feed into a highly technologically skilled and youthful workforce. Virtual mobility has become a
pre-requisite for the knowledge-based lifestyle and by 2020 more than 80 per cent of Dundalk’s
households have WiFi access at competitive speeds.
Financial services took off after 2020 with the development of the Dundalk Financial Services
District in 2021 situated on the newly completed East Coast Harbour. This development had at
last enabled Dundalk to become the prosperous, vibrant, and thriving urban centre that was
once possible only in distant dreams. But while the city experienced an unparalleled surge in
economic growth, the economy is managed under the guidance of strong political leadership
both in the Republic and the North, whose central aim lies in finding a balance between
‘bureaucratic socialism and entrepreneurial capitalism’. By the mid 20’s the corporate world it
seems has taken advantage of its position in local affairs by adopting more responsible
behaviour. Funded by public-private partnerships, clusters of self-sustaining communities
mushroom in the region, most notably with the Mullagharlin project completed by 2025. In close
proximity to the new financial services district, the community is served by cultural quarters to
cater for the increasing multi-national population. By 2025 a mixture of well developed urban
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