New campaign highlights opportunities to live and work in Mayo
The Western Development Commission is encouraging people to consider the region for jobs, business opportunities and a better work-life balance
A new national campaign has been launched to encourage more people to live, work and build businesses in Mayo and the wider West and Northwest.
The Western Development Commission (WDC) has launched its ‘It’s Happening Here’ campaign to highlight the career, business and lifestyle opportunities available across the region.
The initiative covers seven counties – Mayo, Galway, Roscommon, Sligo, Leitrim, Donegal and Clare – and aims to challenge the perception that people must move to larger cities to find career opportunities or establish successful businesses.
The campaign focuses on five areas: business, community, social enterprise, creativity and flexible working.
According to figures highlighted by the WDC, businesses supported by the agency have generated €6.3 billion in exports across the West and Northwest.
The region is also home to more than 1,400 creative enterprises and accounts for 28 percent of Ireland’s social enterprises, despite having just 17 percent of the country’s population.
Volunteering is another key feature, with 15.9 percent of people in the region involved in voluntary activities, a figure above the national average.
The WDC also highlighted the growth of remote and flexible working, with one in three hubs in Ireland’s national Connected Hubs network located in the West and Northwest.
WDC chief executive Allan Mulrooney said the campaign was designed to showcase the opportunities available beyond the region’s well-known scenery and quality of life.
“The West and Northwest are known for their beauty and quality of life, and those are real strengths,” he said. “Alongside them is a strong and growing business base, communities with a proud tradition of volunteering, a significant social enterprise and creative sector, and a third of Ireland’s Connected Hubs.”
Mr Mulrooney said the campaign was aimed at people considering a change in where they live, work or develop their careers.
“We want people to discover what the West and Northwest has to offer,” he said. “If you are thinking about a change – whether that is where you live, where you build your career, where you start or grow a business, or how you work – the opportunities are already happening here, and we would welcome you to be part of them.”
The WDC said the campaign would also highlight the businesses, communities and infrastructure supporting economic and social development across the region.
The campaign will run nationally from October to December 2026. Businesses, community groups and local authorities in Mayo and the wider region are being encouraged to support the initiative and share its message.
Further information is available on the Western Development Commission website.