{
  "id": 14715455,
  "title": "Ireland can’t deliver on ambitions without engineering skills plan",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/ireland-cant-deliver-on-ambitions-without-engineering-skills-plan",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-15T14:00:05.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Silicon Republic",
    "slug": "silicon-republic",
    "url": "https://www.siliconrepublic.com/careers/ireland-ambitions-engineering-skills-expert-working-life-professionals"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Engineers Ireland president Dave Murphy is urging for a coordinated national response to tackle Ireland’s escalating engineering skills shortage. Murphy warns that Ireland risks falling behind in crucial sectors such as housing, infrastructure, energy, and industrial development if there isn't a sufficient supply of skilled professionals to fuel innovation.\n\nDuring his presidential address at the 'Who Will Engineer Ireland's Future? Why Ireland’s Engineering Shortage Matters and What We Can Do About It' event, Murphy highlighted the potential need for up to 30,000 additional engineers by 2031 to meet demands across various sectors. To address the issue, Murphy proposed the creation of an Irish Engineering Talent Forum and a nationwide campaign aimed at inspiring young people to pursue careers in engineering.\n\nThe forum would bring together government and industry stakeholders to monitor Ireland's engineering talent pipeline, starting from secondary school and tracking progress through education, graduation, employment, and retirement. Murphy emphasized that young people should be fascinated by the possibilities engineering offers, such as designing renewable energy systems, constructing housing and water infrastructure, developing medical devices, and creating new technologies.\n\nTo ensure greater equality for women in engineering, the campaign would emphasize supporting and encouraging women and girls to enter the profession, as currently, only 12 to 15 percent of Ireland's engineering workforce consists of women. Murphy's proposal arrives alongside an IDA Ireland report that found Ireland ranks fourth globally in AI engineering talent concentration. The report, co-created with Microsoft and LinkedIn, revealed that Ireland is an appealing location for professionals seeking to advance their careers.\n\nMurphy stressed that almost every major ambition Ireland has can ultimately become an engineering project. However, without a sufficient supply of engineers, Ireland will face challenges in building homes, modernizing infrastructure, completing its energy transition, and remaining internationally competitive. He concluded that while the shortage of engineers is not inevitable, immediate action and leadership are necessary to build the engineering talent needed for Ireland's future.",
  "summary": "The Engineers Ireland president, Dave Murphy, finds that the country needs a coordinated national response to address Ireland’s growing engineering skills shortage. Read more: Ireland can’t deliver on ambitions without engineering skills plan",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}