The Government is preparing a new national economic plan to get 400,000 people back to work.
It is aiming to recover all the jobs lost during the coronavirus crisis by 2023.
The coalition has launched the new economic initiative, which has a heavy emphasis on retraining and investment.
It will go before the Cabinet next week.
Transport Minister Eamon Ryan told On the Record the initiative will be a green recovery.
"It's on the back of a green recovery, it is backing up what the European Union is saying - that this recovery is going to be green and digital".
He said this will mean investing in renewable power, which he said "can be a huge economic benefit for the country, where we have comparative, competitive advantage".
He said this could also see the development of floating offshore wind farms for the west, south-west and south-east coasts.
"It will mean investing in improving the quality of our buildings - retrofitting them - which will have huge health benefits, as well as economic benefits".
He said there are already some 1,500 new apprenticeships in place, with plans for another 9,000.
Mr Ryan said: "That's apprenticeships where you know in the next 30/40 years you can have a really good income, really good, high quality, skilled job.
"So that's an example where I think our position in Government is [to] actually drive this green economic recovery [and] position this country for the future".
He added that the recovery cannot be simply about growth.
"That economic recovery can't just be on an economic growth basis - it has to be a measure of social progress with it as well, and also well-being.
"So broadening the definition of what we see as success, and that's what we're going to stitch into the economic recovery as well.
"It's about quality of life, not just quantity of economic growth".
