Local Development In Northern Ireland

Research effort into the current dynamics and prospects for local development in Northern Ireland.

Outputs were discussion/exchange of papers amongst the research team, draft chapters, discussion with staff of Northern Ireland Economic Council (NIEC).

Funding from NIEC.

Masters in Rural Development

Diploma in Rural Development

The masters and diploma in rural development commenced in 1985 in NUI, Galway. The course has been held in conjunction with FAS. The programme is designed to equip participants with a greater theoretical knowledge of rural development, whilst also developing existing professional knowledge and skills. This is a two year part­time programme. QUB have been major academic contributors to the programme and are responsible for delivering several modules of the course. In previous cycles of the programme, a joint group of students, from North and South, studying rural development attended a week long seminar organised by the Irish Institute in Leuven, Belgium, as part of their academic programme.

The contribution and expertise brought to the course by the contributors from QUB, most notably, Dr John Greer, has been highlighted by several evaluations conducted with past graduates of the course.

Development Potential

Rural Development

There is co­operation in teaching in the area of rural development. There is also an input from QUB into the NUIG Masters in Rural Development programme. NUIG provide an input into the QUB Masters Planning programme.

Three North/South collaborative activities

Grant aided by the Royal Irish Academy to conduct a collaborative study on "Women in the Irish Credit Union Movement: North and South". With QUB and UU.

The Late Dr Vincent Tucker, as a research associate of the centre, wrote an article for a book on "Rural Change in Ireland", edited by John Davis and published by the Institute of Irish Studies, QUB. This book published in 1999, is a joint publication of academics from the NUI Galway, UCC and QUB, to mark the 150th anniversary of the QUB's involvement in rural development.

The Department of Food Economics and Centre for Co­operative Studies, in association with the Centre for Adult Continuing Education, UCC, has hosted Prof. Donal McKillop from QUB and Mr Charlie Ferguson, UU at the Diploma in Credit Union Studies Summer School.

Liquidity in the Forward Exchange Market

The main objective of the project was to explain various foreign exchange rate anomalies that occur in the data.

Development Potential

"Less of a puzzle: A new look at the forward exchange market"

The project started in 1999 and is near completion. The main objective was to extend our previous research to explain foreign exchange rate anomalies. The result explains all anomalies that were previously unexplained.

Development Potential

An analysis of Non­standard Employment Patterns in Manufacturing Firms in the Republic of Ireland.

This project commenced in late 1999 and builds on earlier work carried out by the three of the same researchers. (Reference: "Non­ Standard Employment: Do Firm Characteristics Matter?" Labour Vol. 12 No 4 1998). This earlier study analysed empirically the nature of non-standard employment in manufacturing firms in the Republic of Ireland using plant level data for the year 1995. The firm characteristics examined were nationality, sector and firm size.

The issue of how and when non­standard employment is used has altered considerably over the past decade as Ireland has moved from being an economy with labour surplus to one of labour shortage. The implications of the Celtic Tiger economy at the level of individual enterprises have been dramatic. In the early 1990s employers could decide on which labour contracts were in their own interests as employers, whereas by the end of the labour contracts were being designed to meet the interests and needs of employees.

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the process of change over the 1990s. Instead of using data for one year alone, It is intended to use data for the years 1990 ­ 1998. In addition, given the uneven regional impact of recent growth, it is hoped to examine whether regional location impacts on the extent of use of non­standard employment contracts in manufacturing firms.

Development Potential

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