Business is booming in the Highlands according to the region’s main development agency.
End of year figures for Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) show the organisation is supporting more than 2,000 jobs and has helped to deliver investment of £120million into local projects.
HIE chief executive Alex Paterson said much of the progress had been driven by the agency’s support for local firms.
He said: “The figures show a very strong performance by HIE and our clients in 2013/14.
“Each year we set challenging goals to deliver measurable benefits for the businesses, social enterprises and communities we serve, and to enable the region to contribute to Scotland’s economic growth.”
The group has also laid out an ambitious three-year plan.
Priorities include continuing to support the roll-out of high-speed broadband into rural communities, completing the Inverness campus project and providing infrastructure such as roads for a new business park at Scrabster Harbour.
The document, titled Building our Future, sets out plans to make a cash investment of £74m in projects and programmes across the region.
Mr Paterson added: “Over the past few years, we have put a lot of energy into account management – developing close relationships with companies of all sizes that have strong growth potential. That approach paid particular dividends last year, with local firms really helping to drive growth across the Highlands and Islands.
“At the same time, our commitment to community development, much of which also is underpinned by account management, has achieved excellent results, not least by supporting community ownership of assets and encouraging the growth of social enterprises to improve the resilience of some of our most fragile areas.”
HIE chairman, Professor Lorne Crerar said: “HIE has, and will continue to have, ambition for the region at the heart of all we do. Realising our ambitions will require new ways of doing things, innovative ideas and, above all, a collaborative approach with partners both in the region and beyond.”