Northern Ireland holds its position on productivity but makes no real gains, highlighting urgent long-term challenges for the North West.

New data shows Northern Ireland holding its ground on productivity but not moving forward. For the North West, the findings reinforce the need for long term investment, skills development and strategic regional planning.

Northern Ireland’s productivity ranking has improved, but productivity levels themselves have not. Growth has stalled since 2021, and the gap with both the UK and the Republic of Ireland remains significant. For the North West City Region, the report underlines why sustained investment in skills, innovation and infrastructure is essential to avoid falling further behind.

The Northern Ireland Productivity Dashboard 2025, produced by researchers at Queen’s University Belfast, assesses NI’s performance across 20 long-run drivers of productivity. Productivity is central to higher wages, competitive businesses and stronger public services. The headline finding is clear: NI’s relative position has improved, but actual productivity has not increased.

NI’s productivity was 12.4 percent below the UK average in 2023, an improvement from 13.2 percent last year, moving NI from 10th to 8th place among the 12 UK regions. However, this shift reflects weaker performance elsewhere and ONS data revisions rather than meaningful domestic growth. NI also continues to lag the Republic of Ireland, where productivity is around 9 percent above the UK average and 25 percent higher than NI.

The dashboard confirms that pandemic-era gains have plateaued. NI rose sharply during Covid-19, but progress has since stalled. New measures on management practices, lifelong learning and EV charging infrastructure provide a deeper view of structural challenges holding back productivity growth.

For the North West, these findings reinforce the need to expand Ulster University’s Magee Campus, accelerate AI and digital skills pathways, strengthen SME leadership capability and deliver long-term infrastructure improvements. The case for City Deal delivery, an AI Growth Zone at Foyle Port and enhanced cross-border collaboration is stronger than ever.

The Chamber will continue to monitor productivity trends and integrate these findings into ongoing advocacy across skills, infrastructure and investment.

The Takeaway

NI’s productivity ranking has improved, but growth has stalled since 2021. For the North West, this reinforces the need for sustained investment in skills, innovation and infrastructure.

Find the full NI Productivity Dashboard 2025 here.