Visit of Minister Leo Varadkar to US south-east for St. Patrick’s Day promotional opportunities and meetings

The Consulate helped to organised meetings and events in Miami, Atlanta and Savannah as part of a St. Patrick’s Day programme for Minister Varadkar in the US south-east over March 11th-18th. The Minister met with the Governor of Georgia, Nathan Deal, and the Mayors of Atlanta (Kasim Reed) and Savannah (Edna Jackson); delivered keynote addresses at the Irish Chamber of Atlanta and the Hibernian Society of Savannah, amongst many sets of remarks; and met with leading US multinationals like Coca-Cola and AT&T. The Minister was also interviewed on CNN International by Richard Quest for the “Quest Means Business” show, while the Atlanta Business Chronicle and the Savannah Morning News carried opinion pieces by the Minister to coincide with his visits to the respective cities. In Miami, the Minister held a number of high-level discussions and meetings with potential to expand tourism and business links with Ireland. The visit had a strong focus on our story of economic recovery and Ireland as a place to do business.