A total of €8.24m in grants has been announced for 95 Enterprise Centres around the country under Enterprise Ireland's Enterprise Centres Fund.
Enterprise Centres are embedded in communities in every county in the country and provide space and training for entrepreneurs.
This allows them to work remotely, access training and advice and network with other business leaders.
The new funding will be crucial as the centres continue to offer services to local businesses during what is an exceptionally difficult time amid the Covid-19 crisis.
It will help the centres implement a recovery plan for businesses within their remit over the next six to 12 months.
The Enterprise Centres Fund was launched in August and is open to both not-for-profit and for-profit enterprise centres which have seen their income significantly impacted as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The 95 Enterprise Centres will receive grants ranging from €10,000 to €150,000.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Leo Varadkar said the new funding will help enterprise centres all over the country to modernise their facilities protecting the health and safety of people who work there and helping to secure much needed jobs.
Julie Sinnamon, CEO of Enterprise Ireland, said that over the past 20 years, Enterprise Centres have provided important infrastructure for entrepreneurs and are an essential part of the start-up ecosystem across Ireland.
"The centres, many of which are regionally based, provide space, connectivity, mentoring and support to start-up founders and teams, helping them to scale internationally," Ms Sinnamon said.
"The funding announced today through Enterprise Ireland will ensure that the Enterprise Centres, many of whom have been negatively impacted by Covid-19, can sustain their businesses, pivot and further develop their services to support the next wave of Irish start-up companies," she added.
