Getting a fair share from the NWRA

The reclassification of the Northern and Western Region (NWRA) to a “more developed” region by the European Commission has caused irritation – and some worry about the effect on local development projects. However, in the current funding period of 2021-2027, Cavan County Council has not submitted any proposals at all. Meaning, County Cavan has not received any money under the European Regional Development Funds (ERDF) scheme co-ordinated by the NWRA. Monaghan so far received a little over €7M for one project.

A total of €217M is allocated to ERDF projects and initiatives. The objective is to boost the regional economy and competitiveness of the eight counties - Cavan, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Monaghan, Roscommon and Sligo.

The Celt wanted to find out why Cavan and Monaghan are trailing behind, while other counties in the region are receiving so much of the funding. What is the focus of the scheme? Why does it not appeal to the counties equally? Are councils possibly overlooking opportunities?

The NWRA offers nine schemes through which local councils, research and innovation institutions, as well as small and medium enterprises (SMEs), can apply to achieve convergence and aim to reduce economic disparities.

Looking at these schemes as well, as the current list of beneficiaries, a few observations stand out: Six of the nine schemes focus on research, innovation and technology. Currently €72.5M is allocated towards university projects in Galway and Sligo - with a projected total of €96M by the end of the funding period, according to the NWRA.

Paddy Austin, Assistant Director ERDF within the NWRA, explains this is partly due to the overarching framework: “Of the €217 million at least 30% have to go towards innovation and 30% towards climate-related actions. Obviously, we’ve exceeded that on innovation, but that’s largely because it’s also very much a component of the SMART specialisation strategy, which is aimed at linking research to innovation and to commercialisation.”

Targeting climate action, the Warmer Houses scheme will tally at around €65M by 2027. Run by the SEAI, households all over the region can - and have - availed of it.

But, if so much of the funds are going towards third level education centres, why are neither Cavan Institute nor Monaghan Institute on the list of recipients? Paddy Austin concedes: “That is an area which we need to pick up on, because the institute technically could attract funding, but our schemes don’t seem to have been designed to really include them to the scale that we should and could.”

Another point is the lack of small business engagement. In other European regions, SMEs draw heavily from the ERDF pot to be more competitive and future proof. They have received funding for the development of their equipment (eg new milling machines), raising productivity (eg expansion of their bakery) or lowering energy costs (eg exchange of heating systems). However, not one SME in Cavan or Monaghan has made use of the ERDF schemes managed by the NWRA.

Considering the economic structure of Cavan and Monaghan, this raises the question whether the schemes offered do not apply to the local SMEs. Paddy Austin admits “there is a disconnect across the region”. With a strong health sector in Galway and precision engineering activities in Sligo, as well as AI and other tech-related enterprises, Cavan and Monaghan “wouldn’t fit those categories neatly”.

At the same time, local councils don’t appear to have pursued the available funding. Cavan, in particular, has not picked up any of the calls for proposals. In fact, while all the other counties took the opportunity to avail of THRIVE (Town Centre First Heritage Revival Scheme) for local development, Cavan halted their plans, despite being allowed to claim staff costs. Originally, Cavan was set to focus on five vacant and underutilised buildings west of Farnham Street.

Asked about the status of NWRA funding, a spokesperson for Cavan County Council said: “In order to maximise the potential of Strand 1 funding, and to ensure Cavan County Council is best positioned to secure Strand 2 funding, it was agreed that we would await the second round of calls for proposals under THRIVE.”

So far, a “number of potential projects have been discussed”.

Flood prevention measures are another example of a missed opportunity. As part of the climate action scheme (Decarbonising Zone), councils can apply for mitigation of climate impact. Paddy Austin names Leitrim as a prime example of a county using the funds to become more resilient.

“We want to see an uptake from Cavan, particularly because they didn’t apply under THRIVE,” he said.

Describing the NWRA’s role as that of project managers, it is their task to engage with councils: “We’re saying to them ‘look, you didn’t apply. How can we get you to apply?’ So we actively engage with the local authorities, and we also engage with Enterprise Ireland to attract projects.

“I’m not saying that we’re always successful, but we’ll drag the horse to water and get them to apply for the next round.”

Acknowledging the disconnect, the NWRA has made adjustments to their schemes, Mr Austin says. Within the next three months, the NWRA will be rolling out a social housing scheme for councils worth over €34M and a ‘green enterprise’ scheme open to every SME that wishes to develop a green enterprise or develop products and services. He is hoping that Cavan and Monaghan will pick up on the Social Housing scheme.

He concedes “there is a complexity around applying for EU funding” and some local authorities lack the capacity.

Donegal County Council, however, appears to have maximised funding opportunities. The local authority recruited EU project officers and similar roles within their Economic Development Directorate. Those personnel are responsible for securing funding, managing partnerships, and implementing projects across various EU programmes.

Mr Austin elaborates: “Under the social housing scheme, the grants will range from €4-12M. If someone dedicates themselves to writing the application and draws down a grant of €12m, that’s a great return on investment.”

On top of that staff costs in the first application development phase can be claimed – a similar offer exists for THRIVE. Meaning, the councils can fund a person to dedicate their time to applying.

Local councillor Trevor Smith, who is a member of the NWRA, is astonished to learn about the opportunities.

“It is disappointing to hear that Cavan hasn’t received any funding so far.”

He agrees that infrastructure projects such as flood prevention measures would be a sensible proposal for Cavan.

Given that County Monaghan was recently looking for funding for flood prevention, Seán Conlon (SF) has asked his council asking whether it is engaging with the NWRA to secure grant aid under the ERDF schemes. Monaghan Council confirmed to the Celt that they recently submitted two proposals to the NWRA Decarbonising Zones Scheme for climate projects.