IDA Ireland spent over €3.2 million on events promoting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Ireland from 2018-2023.
Figures released under Freedom of Information show a total of 143 events have been hosted by the statutory agency over that five-year period.
In 2018, IDA Ireland spent a total of €902,119 on over 34 events in that year.
A spokesperson said: "Such industry conferences and events are a crucial part of IDA Ireland’s marketing strategy, serving as a valuable instrument in fostering investment into Ireland and job creation.
"These events grant IDA executives access to key decision makers within our strategic sectors of focus and provide a platform to influence them to consider Ireland as an investment location.
"Additionally, sponsorships provide branding and awareness benefits for the organisation whilst helping to strengthen our network of important corporate clients.
"The organisation has a systematic approach for sponsorship selection to ensure that we maximise the impact of our spending."
The spokesperson said the sponsorship figure could include added value such as speaker opportunities for their events.
In 2019 the number of events increased, up to 36 from 34 with a total spend of €826,815.
Understandably, due to the pandemic there was a huge drop-off in the number of events that took place in 2020. They put on just 11 events and spent a total of €88,441.
The spokesperson said: "As expected, in person attendance at conferences was impacted by the pandemic, although we did reach our audiences through virtual events, where possible.
"Throughout this period, IDA Ireland continued to grow both investments and employment numbers, in part due to this critical activity."
Two years on from the pandemic, the spending was back up to €772,089 in 2022 when they put on 23 events. So far, in 2023 only 16 events have taken place, and they have spent just €130,429.
