Our Strategy

We were established under the terms of the 1998 Belfast Agreement, as the all-island Trade & Business Development Body, with the remit to ‘exchange information and co-ordinate work on trade, business development and related matters, in areas where the two administrations specifically agree it would be in their mutual interest’.

Over the years, our strategy has evolved to meet and translate our legislative remit to enhance North/South business co-operation, delivering mutual economic benefits to Northern Ireland and Ireland. We have achieved this through targeted business and economic research, engagement with the business and policy communities North and South, and evidence-based programme design, implementation, evaluation and review.

Our early work addressed a knowledge gap which was inhibiting trade and business development linkages between Ireland and Northern Ireland. This was addressed primarily through the development of ‘networks of trust’ between the business communities North and South. More recently we identified, and acted upon, the importance of co-operation through more formal business networks as a key source of knowledge diffusion, competitive advantage and increased trade.

Synergy is InterTradeIreland’s cross border cluster initiative that aims to increase the growth and competitiveness on the island of Ireland, by supporting synergistic cross-border connections between networks, partnerships, sectors and clusters on the island of Ireland.

The initiative’s services include:

• Facilitating cross border collaboration between cluster participants to improve innovation capability,
• Exploring business and funding opportunities,
• Fostering entrepreneurship,
• Providing education & training, and
• Supporting internationalisation.

Activities will be rolled out in 2019 and beyond to promote cross-border collaborative activity including new match making events with opportunities to innovate with others outside of your organisation, support to help find partners across the border and training to help new cluster participants gain value from joining a cluster.

From applying for joint funding and procurement opportunities to finding innovation partners, to support on how to get the most from working with collaborative partners, Synergy aims to boost the cross border innovation ecosystem and strengthen collaborative links. If you would like to discuss opportunities to collaborate on a cross border basis or if you would like to be notified when events are taking place get in touch with the Synergy team.

Creating an environment in which Ireland and Northern Ireland co-operate to ensure businesses are making full use of cross-border opportunities to drive competitiveness, growth and jobs.

We will support businesses, through our innovation and trade initiatives, to take advantage of North/South co-operative opportunities to improve capability, and drive competitiveness, jobs and growth.

Our value proposition for the business community is to deliver benefits in the key areas of competitive advantage – science, technology & innovation, and sales and marketing.