Francesca Guardiola, the Government’s Director General of Foreign Relations, inaugurated the seminar "Chile, a country to invest in", an event  organised by the Port of Barcelona with the support of the Generalitat of Catalonia. During her intervention, Guardiola announced the Government’s plan to organise a Trade Mission to Chile in November as part Catalonia’s Four Motors for Europe Presidency. The Mission will be organised in conjunction with the Port of Barcelona and the General Council of the Catalan Chambers to explore and develop international trade and business opportunities in the region. The Foreign Relations Director General affirmed that the sum of the Government’s efforts, together with the work carried out by the other entities, to carry out the mission “generates many expectations but will certainly be a guarantee of success”.

 

In this respect, Catalonia aspires to share its knowledge of the South-American country with the members of the Four Motors for Europe network (Baden-Württemberg, Lombardy and Rhône-Alpes) to find new ways to encourage their development and internationalisation. Guardiola affirmed that “as a result of the historic, cultural and institutional bonds, Catalonia and Chile have very good understanding of each other”. “In the last few years, Chile has been sending obvious signals that have brought us to pay close attention to the country and place our belief in Chile, one of the most dynamic economies in Latin America”, added Guardiola.

 

The Director General also announced that “the Government wishes to involve the highest institutional representation” available for this mission. On behalf of the Government of Catalonia, the mission will be organised by the Secretariat for Foreign and European Affairs, which also coordinates the Catalan Presidency of the Four Motors for Europe, and ACCIÓ, the Ministry for Business and Labour’s Agency for Business Competitiveness.

 

Since January 23, Catalonia has held the presidency of the Four Motors for Europe with the clear commitment to advance towards a new economic model based on innovation, intelligence and sustainable production. Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), as well as industrial and manufacturer innovation, have been the central pillars of the Catalan presidency, which has aimed to encourage and promote a platform for debate and the exchange of innovative and sustainable proposals between these four leading European territories. In addition to the Mission to Chile, the Catalan Presidency has also planned for the network to organise a seminar in Brussels next October within the framework of the European Week of Regions and local administrations organised by the European institutions (“Open Days”).

 

Chile benefits from a great geo-strategic situation, a degree of foreign openness and stability conditions for business investment that make the country into an ideal platform for the internationalisation of companies, mostly to access the American and Asian markets through the Pacific Ocean. It is currently the most highly valued emerging economy in Latin American and one of the most distinguished on a global scale. It stands out because of its high political, economic and social standards, as well as its solid institutional framework, the strength and transparency of its public institutions, a modern infrastructures network and efficient financial markets. Moreover, it is the first country in the world in numbers of Trade Agreements signed, guaranteeing it preferential access to global markets.