Enterprise Estonia and the Nordic Embassies in cooperation with FECC, DECC, Business Sweden, NECC and Innovation Norway, organised a gathering of Nordic investors in Estonia to celebrate the successful cooperation between the Scandinavian and Estonian business communities.
The event gave an overview of current initiatives promoting entrepreneurship in Estonia and gave a chance to discuss future prospects.
Hanno Tomberg, Chairman of the Board of Enterprise Estonia thanked the Nordic companies for their contribution to Estonian economy and stressed the importance of continuous foreign investment into Estonia. He also gave an overview of the steps that the state is taking in order to make it easier for foreign companies to operate in Estonia – namely the measures of state support for large investors as well as tariff reductions for large-scale electricity consumers, to name a few.
H.E. Ms Kirsti Narinen, Ambassador of Finland spoke on behalf of the Nordic Ambassadors and highlighted the importance of continuous close cooperation between the Nordic countries.
Heiki Raadik, Head of Corporate Banking at Swedbank gave a presentation on the trends in the Estonian economy, stressing that the changing business environment in Estonia calls for automation in industries as well as moving up in the value chain. The presentation is available here.
Märt Helmja, FDI Area Manager of the Estonian Investment Agency gave an overview of what kind of investments Estonia is looking to attract and also emphasised Estonia’s high ranking in the average job value of investment projects. The presentation is available here.
Mart Laidmets, Deputy Secretary General for General and Vocational Education of the Ministry of Education and Research, talked about the Estonian education system and about the opportunities and challenges when it comes to meeting the needs of the labour market. The presentation is available here.
Helena Almquist, Managing Director of Protex Balti AS and Vice Chairman of Norwegian Estonian Chamber of Commerce shared Protex’s story of being a Norwegian investor in Estonia. Protex is one of biggest suppliers of textile solutions in the Baltics, employing 250 people in Tallinn and Pärnu. The presentation is available here.
Minister of Entrepreneurship Ms Liisa Oviir also thanked the companies for their impact and assured that the Estonian business environment will be developed in close cooperation with the private sector so that it will become more and more business-friendly.
Photos of the event are available here.