Sofia Investment Agency presented the business climate in Sofia and the investment opportunities in the city before a business delegation from Portugal. The presentation took place at the invitation of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), which organised a number of meetings for the foreign delegation within two consecutive days – 11 and 12 May. The purpose of the visit to Bulgaria is to present the opportunities for doing business with Portugal and, in particular, with the city of Santa Maria da Feira.
HE Helena Margarida Rezende de Almeida Coutinho, Ambassador of Portugal to Bulgaria, and the Mayor of Santa Maria da Feira Emídio Sousa attended the meeting. They presented the economic achievements of the country and the industry developed in the region of Santa Maria da Feira – production of cork, insulations, other cork products, paper, footwear, metallurgy, agriculture, and food industry. According to the presented data, Portugal is ranked 39th in the world in terms of competitiveness. The procedures for registering new businesses are as easy as possible and take three days. In 2018, the country’s GDP growth is expected to rise to 3.3%. Portugal offers skilled labor force and 60% of staff speak at least one foreign language. HE Helena Margarida Rezende de Almeida Coutinho pointed out that the country is the world’s second largest exporter of footwear, wine and olive oil. Among the promising industries in Portugal are aviation, automotive industry, building materials including cork, textiles, footwear, etc.
On the Bulgarian side, Tsvetan Simeonov, President of the BCCI, and Stanimir Mihaylov, President of the Bulgarian-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce, spoke about the opportunities for business cooperation between Sofia and the Portuguese city. Anna Dimitrova, senior expert in the Investment Analysis department of Sofia Investment Agency outlined the economy of Sofia, the industries with the most dynamic development and the opportunities for starting a business in the Bulgarian capital.
The presentation shown to the Portuguese delegation is available here.