BELGIUM Wallonia, Your dedicated gateway to Europe : Wallonia, the new logistics hub of Europe BELGIUM Wallonia, Your dedicated gateway to Europe Daniel H. JORDAN
Head of Asian Investments
Office for Foreign Investors
Wallonia Foreign Trade and Investment Agency
SALON AUTOMNE 2006 DE LIEGE
FORUM ECONOMIQUE ET RENCONTRES B2B
LE VIETNAM EN WALLONIE
Slide2 : The Office for Foreign Investors (OFI) is the foreign investment division of the Wallonia Export and Foreign Investment Agency – AWEX
OFI provides :
Information
Advice
Contacts
Solutions
to foreign companies considering expanding business in Southern Belgium
Clients are treated on a confidentiality basis
Services are free of charge EFFECTIVE HELP FROM THE OFFICE FOR FOREIGN INVESTORS
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA A positive business
climate 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
KEY FIGURES : KEY FIGURES Networks (Km) Source: Service fédéral Mobilité et Transports
(*) 2001
(**) 1999 Structure of the population Source: Institut national de statistique: « Statistiques démographiques »
(*) Thousands of inhabitants Geographical data Source: Institut national de statistique: « Statistiques de l’occupation du sol »
(*) Km²
(**) Percentage of total area
A POSITIVE BUSINESS CLIMATE : A POSITIVE BUSINESS CLIMATE Capital of Belgium
Capital of the EU
Headquarters of NATO
centre of political decision-making
4th in the list of the European business cities
1,700 European headquarters of MNO’s
3rd most important conference centre in Europe
World’s fourth Open Trade Economy
Second largest concentration of journalists in the world
BRUSSELS WALLONIA BRUSSELS, Global business centre
WALLONIA
Slide7 : A TRADITION OF ECONOMIC OPENING Source: Wallonia Export and Investment Agency A POSITIVE BUSINESS CLIMATE
Slide8 : 2) STRUCTURE OF THE WALLONIA FOREIGN INVESTMENTS
Country of origin – sector of activity A POSITIVE BUSINESS CLIMATE
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 2. A central geographic
location 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
Slide10 : . A CENTRAL GEOGRAPHIC POSITION Do you know that 60% of the European market is located at less than one driving day ? At the heart of a 430 million Consumer Market
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 3. Outstanding transportation
network International and regional airports
Dense and fluid freeway network
Well-developed rail network
Second European river port 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
Slide12 : A DENSE RAILWAY NETWORK USA= base 100 Source: Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 Railway network
Density /sq.km OUTSTANDING TRANSPORTATION NETWORK
A DEVELOPED ROAD NETWORK... : A DEVELOPED ROAD NETWORK... Source: IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 Road Infrastructure
Density Km/sq.Km OUTSTANDING TRANSPORTATION NETWORK
EUROPE IN A FLAP OF WINGS… : EUROPE IN A FLAP OF WINGS… 1. Brussels South Charleroi Airport "Aeropole" of 200 hectares;
welcomes millions passengers each year;
specialized in passenger transport (regular charter flights);
base for conducting tests by surrounding aeronautical industries.
. OUTSTANDING TRANSPORTATION NETWORK 2. Liege Airport At the centre of the Amsterdam – Paris – Frankfurt triangle;
First European airport to focus its development
strategy on air cargo;
accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week;
European hub of the express courier company TNT
ACCESSIBILITY BY WATERWAY AND SHORT-SEA : ACCESSIBILITY BY WATERWAY AND SHORT-SEA Main industrial areas
Accessibility by water
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 4. A qualified workforce,
flexible and multilingual Multilingual and well-educated
Positive social climate
Low rate of strikes and absenteeism
Outstanding productivity
Loyalty - Low turnover (no « job-hoppers »)
1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
Slide17 : Source: OCDE A QUALIFIED WORKFORCE FLEXIBLE AND MULTILINGUAL Anglo-saxon Germanic Romanic
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 5.Land and buildings,
available and at low cost
130 business Parks
5 Multimodal logistics Parks
6 Science Parks 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
130 BUSINESS PARKS : 130 BUSINESS PARKS The region of Wallonia, embodies 8 local authorities and manages 130 industrial zones totally equipped and connected to large communication networks and development centres. LAND AND BUILDINGS AVAILABLE AND AT LOW COST
Slide20 : 6 MULTIMODAL LOGISTICS PARKS Multimodal platforms guarantee you easy connections with all the transport means.
Access to sea port areas Eastern Europe, South Europe, and Scandinavia is possible by road, rail, fluvial navigation and air!
You can modulate transport according to your customers needs. LAND AND BUILDINGS AVAILABLE AND AT LOW COST
5 SCIENCE PARKS : 5 SCIENCE PARKS LAND AND BUILDINGS AVAILABLE AND AT LOW COST
AFFORDABLE REAL ESTATE PRICES : AFFORDABLE REAL ESTATE PRICES Source: DTZ - Walloon Semi-industrial & Logistic Market 2004 Land prices and rents LAND AND BUILDINGS AVAILABLE AND AT LOW COST
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 6. Attractive regional
investment incentives cash grant up to 20% of the invested amount;
Up to 70% interest free loans for R&D projects;
Staff hiring and training; 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
ATTRACTIVE REGIONAL INVESTMENT INCENTIVES : ATTRACTIVE REGIONAL INVESTMENT INCENTIVES INVESTMENTS INCENTIVES
Percentage eligible investment amount is based on the purchase of:
Land and Buildings ;
New equipment;
Intangible investments;
Trucks > 3,5 tons
Calculation of grant based on various criteria
RESEACH AND DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT
Subsidy - Basic Industrial Research : 50% (up to 70% for SME’s)
Advance loan - Applied Research : 50% (up to 70% for SME’s)
EMPLOYMENT & TRAINING INCENTIVES
Reduction of salary costs
average over a 4 years period: 11 %
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 7. Fiscal system 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
ATTRACTIVE FISCAL SYSTEM : ATTRACTIVE FISCAL SYSTEM Corporate :
Real estate and equipment depreciation system
Special tax vehicles : Fiscal Rulings, Notional Interest Deduction
Low marginal corporate tax rate
Shareholders : no taxation on capital gain
Management : attractive fiscal system for expatriates Effective marginal tax rates Source : The Effective Tax Burden of Companies in the Member states of EU Source : Baker & MçKenzie
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 8. Education and
quality of life 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
Slide28 : Sports and leisure
International clubs, school & communities
No traffic jam
Dense communication infrastructure
LIFESTYLE BEYOND BUSINESS Proximity of the urban centres
Cities in the country side
High quality healthcare system
EDUCATION AND QUALITY OF LIFE
Slide29 : COST OF LIVING SURVEY 2005 Source: Mercer HR 2005 Worldwide rankings 2005 – Top 50 Cities
Base City New-York = 100 EDUCATION AND QUALITY OF LIFE
Slide30 : Overall Quality of Living – Ranking
Base city: New York (=100) QUALITY OF LIVING SURVEY 2005 Source: Mercer HR 2005 EDUCATION AND QUALITY OF LIFE
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 9. A rich corporate
environment The Innovating Sectors…
Life Sciences
Agro-industry
aeronautics/space
mechanical engineering
Transport-logistics 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA : 10 GOOD REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA 10.Effective help from the OFI 1. A positive business climate
2. A central geographic location
3. Outstanding transportation network
4. A qualified workforce, flexible and multilingual
5. Land and buildings, available and at low cost
6. Attractive regional and EU investment incentives
7. Fiscal system
8. Education and quality of life
9. A rich corporate environment
10. Effective help from the OFI
Slide33 :
HQ in Brussels – Offices in Namur & Eupen (German Community)
4 local offices - Tokyo, Chicago, San Francisco, Shanghai
4 representative offices in Barcelona, Stockholm, Frankfurt, London
A team of 105 dedicated professionals abroad EFFECTIVE HELP FROM THE OFFICE FOR FOREIGN INVESTORS
OFI, A WIDE RANGE OF SERVICES : OFI, A WIDE RANGE OF SERVICES FOREIGN INVESTOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
ASSISTANCE WITH
Regional and European
R&D PROGRAMS - GRANTS FISCAL & LEGAL
ASSISTANCE
SITE SELECTION SOCIAL ISSUES FINANCIAL ISSUES
OFI, REGIONAL COORDINATORS : OFI, REGIONAL COORDINATORS
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION… : WALLONIA FOREIGN TRADE AND INVESTMENT AGENCY
Office for Foreign Investors
Avenue Materne, 115
B-5100 NAMUR
www.investinwallonia.be
investinwallonia@investinwallonia.be
Tel : +32 (0)81 33 28 50
Fax : +32 (0)81 33 28 69 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION…
Slide37 :
Thank you for your time and attention