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A Global Pharma Leader

Ireland’s life sciences sector has a global reputation for operational and innovational excellence. Leading industry names including Novartis, AbbVie, Janssen, Pfizer, Sanofi, Lilly, AstraZeneca, MSD, Bristol Myers Squibb and Takeda have significant operations here.

85+ pharmaceutical companies operate in Ireland
30,000 people employed in IDA client companies

An Exporting Powerhouse

Ireland is the world’s third largest exporter of pharmaceuticals, according to the UN International Trade Statistics database. The sector continues to evolve, expanding its capabilities to include innovation, digitalisation and next-generation technologies.

€80+ billion annual exports
Pharma comprises 39% of annual exports from Ireland

Opportunities to Collaborate

Multinationals operating in Ireland have many opportunities to collaborate with domestic companies, a network of life sciences sub-supply providers and multiple industry-focused research centres spanning a variety of technologies.

Facilitated sharing of best practice between companies
Active industry-academic partnership in technology, materials, manufacturing and more

Strong Compliance Record

Ireland has an exemplary compliance record with regulatory agencies like the FDA and EMA, who collaborate and work closely with our Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) to achieve trouble-free compliance.

50 FDA-approved pharma and biopharma plants
Fair oversight of regulated companies and a culture of excellence in compliance

World-Class Talent

Ireland’s industry can avail of skilled talent in existing pharma sites, experienced in quality assurance, quality control, product development, science and engineering. There’s also unrestricted access to the EU labour pool of over 240 million people.

Strong links with universities provide local talent matched to industry needs
Fast-track support for employment permits for skilled international labour

We are committed to Ireland and will work with all local partners to build this state-of-art next generation biomanufacturing facility as a showcase to the global biotech community

Dr Chris Chen
CEO, WuXi Biologics

See What Sets Ireland Apart

IDA trade mission to the West Coast to meet CEO Adam Selipsky.
Success Story

There is an abundance of talent in Ireland which helped us to exceed our talent growth targets ahead of schedule. Ireland is a great place to do business, the country’s creative culture and diverse pool of technical skills make it an ideal location for our rapidly expanding business

Mike Beary
Ireland Country Manager, AWS
Read full success story
Visual of the Dundalk plant before construction commenced.
Success Story

We are committed to Ireland and will work with all local partners to build this state-of-art next generation biomanufacturing facility as a showcase to the global biotech community

Dr Chris Chen
CEO, WuXi Biologics
Read full success story
Stryker grand opening in Cork in 2017.
Success Story

Innovation, game changing technology and the opportunity to positively impact peoples’ lives are some of the reasons people love working with Stryker in Ireland

Aidan O'Shea
Vice President of Stryker’s Ireland and UK locations
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Zendesk celebrating their jobs expansion with IDA Ireland.
Success Story

Ireland has really become a place where a lot of Europeans want to work and we've been very lucky in attracting great talent from all over Europe that are now working in Dublin

Mikkel Svane
CEO, Zendesk
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Qualtrics announcing further job expansions.
Success Story

Ultimately, what you want is a geography where you can build an office that has broad market coverage. For a company going into Europe, Ireland has the lowest cost to set up a business, with a broad pool of talent from across the EU

Jared Smith
Co-Founder
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Ireland is Home to Amazon's First Infrastructure Region Outside the US
WuXi Biologics Chooses Ireland as the Location for its First International ‘Factory of the Future’
Leading MedTech Company Stryker in Ireland over 20 Years
Zendesk Expands Team to 500 Staff in Ireland
Qualtrics Chooses Ireland for its Skills Base