Northern Ireland’s Assured Skills Programme – which can fund up to £2m per project – is paying dividends through job creation, according to Department of Employment and Learning Minister Dr Stephen Farry.
He was speaking following the recent announcement of 70 new posts in financial services sector here.
Mr Farry said: “My Department’s Assured Skills programme supports companies by providing the skilled workforce that they require. I am greatly encouraged by this investment as tangible proof that the skills needed by world-leading companies are available here in Northern Ireland.”
The 70 jobs will be located in financial services firm, the CME Group’s new state-of-the-art offices in Millennium House at Great Victoria Street, Belfast.
Thirty members of staff are currently in place there with the additional 70 employees expected to be recruited over the next year.
The investment in the new centre, announced in January 2012, has been supported by Invest Northern Ireland and the Department for Employment and Learning under its Assured Skills Programme.
When a company is interested in creating jobs in Northern Ireland, the Assured Skills project ensures that a workforce with the required skills is available by providing the necessary support to deliver that expertise through bespoke training programmes – up to £2m per project.
Mark Bennett, executive director software engineering at CME Group Belfast, said: “We made the decision to open an office in Belfast this past January to provide our global operations with information technology support. Belfast appealed to us because it has a highly educated and committed workforce within an attractive business environment and is supported by solid telecommunications and transport infrastructures.
“These technology positions range from graduate level to senior and lead software engineers and will help with the software development and programming for our website, market data, order management and other web-based tools our customers and employees use.
“All of these jobs will in some way help our customers to manage their risk and will be vital to our business.”