“These projects will be undertaken in rural and urban settings and will place the needs of the citizen at the heart of digital innovation. For example, the Programme will support a pilot project in Galway City which uses thermal imaging technology to detect persons entering the River Corrib at known blackspots. An automated early warning system will alert local services so that assistance can be provided if required. The project has the potential to save lives in and around the River Corrib and, if successfully replicated elsewhere, could further advance water safety in Ireland.

“Another project will provide mobile phone coverage for the first time for the town of Malin Beg in Co. Donegal, through collaboration between the local community, county council and industry.

“These initiatives address a diverse range of issues, but are all linked by the innovative use of digital technology and infrastructure to bring real, tangible benefits to local communities. The creativity and collaboration that has gone into their design is highly impressive.”

“Other projects seek to preserve local heritage and promote sustainable tourism. For example, free WiFi connectivity will be provided on 71 kilometres of the Grand Canal Greenway, as it runs through Co. Offaly. This initiative will further support cycling tourism in the county and promote the attractions along the Greenway.

“Solar powered Smart Benches being piloted in Fingal in Dublin will enable people to charge their devices and surf the internet wirelessly while they take a seat.

“The projects being announced today build on an initial five projects approved under the Digital Innovation Programme in September. The lessons learned from each of these projects will be shared with other local authorities, allowing each initiative to be scaled up or replicated effectively and efficiently.

“I wish the local authorities well with their projects and look forward to celebrating their successes. I hope to announce further approvals under the Digital Innovation Programme in the coming months.”

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Notes to editors

Project	Local Authority	Award
EuroVelo Route 1 (EV1): Smart Technologies for Rural Tourism (Sligo, Donegal & Leitrim)	Sligo (lead)	€75,000
Smart Street Furniture	Fingal	€72,000
Cemetery Digitisation	Westmeath	€53,000
Erris History and Folklore Digitisation Project	Mayo	€50,000
Free public WiFi – Grand Canal Greenway	Offaly	€40,000
Mobile Coverage Blackspot at Malin Beg, Co Donegal	Donegal	€35,000
Development of Wild Atlantic Way “Digital Discovery Points”	Kerry	€32,000
Shared Telecommunications Infrastructure and Co-Development	Sligo	€30,000
River Corrib Thermal Image Monitoring – Water Safety Initiative	Galway City	€24,000
Ireland’s Road to 5G: Accelerating Deployment Across Irish Towns and Cities	Dublin City	€24,000
Sign of the Times – application development	Tipperary	€8,000
Report / Survey re: Precision Farming	Tipperary	€6,000
Where in Wicklow	Wicklow	€4,800