Councillors on North Carolina ‘fact-finding visit’

Three Causeway Coast and Glens councillors have crossed the Atlantic this week as part of a five-day ‘fact-finding and relationship building’ mission to North Carolina.

The trip has been organised by the borough’s Local Economic Partnership (LEP).

Funded by the Department for the Economy, LEPs were set up to act as “catalysts for economic transformation” by tailoring interventions to the specific needs of historically underperforming regions.

Two DUP councillors, Aaron Callan and Tanya Elder plus one Sinn Fein representative, Kathleen McGurk are on the North Carolina trip, alongside two council officers plus representatives from Ulster University and Causeway Chamber.

Though LEPs are a Stormont initiative, Causeway Coast and Glens Council is the “accountable body” and plays a significant role in administering the partnership.

Asked about the trip’s aims, a spokesperson said: “It is primarily a research, fact-finding and relationship-building visit, rather than a trade mission at this stage. It builds on engagement with the North Carolina Chamber during its visit to Northern Ireland in August”.

The spokesperson explained how the visit aims to explore potential benefits for the Borough through:

Investment promotion - Raising awareness of the Borough’s sector strengths and opportunities as a location for business and investment.

Future business opportunities - Identifying contacts and areas of shared interest that could support future trade, supply-chain links and collaboration.

Research and skills partnerships - Exploring university and industry relationships relevant to local businesses, education providers and the Borough’s Growth Deal.

Learning from other approaches - Understanding how partners support innovation and economic development, and identifying lessons that could inform activity locally.

The spokesperson added: “The immediate priority is to establish and develop relationships and assess where there is genuine potential. The findings will help inform whether further collaboration or a future business-led trade mission could offer clear benefits for the Borough”.

When questioned on cost, the council spokesperson said the trip was 100% funded through the Department for the Economy’s Regional Balance Fund allocation to the LEP.

“Final expenditure will be confirmed following completion of the visit and reconciliation of invoices and expenses”.

LEPs were established under a new Stormont strategy that aims to rebalance NI’s economy in favour of outlying regions.

Backed by £4.5 million in funding Causeway Coast and Glen LEP brings together representatives from local government, business, education, community organisations, and statutory agencies “to co-design and implement interventions that respond to the unique economic challenges and opportunities within the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough”.

Among those challenges are low productivity, below-average wages, high economic inactivity, and reliance on low-margin industries such as tourism and retail.

The LEP’s role is to act as a catalyst for economic transformation by identifying local priorities, coordinating investment, and ensuring that economic development activity is responsive to the needs of businesses and communities.