Alentejo’s infrastructures and economy highlighted at EXPO Dubai
The potential foreign investment for the Alentejo is quite encouraging, as a result of the different economic diplomacy meetings framed in the presence of the Invest in Alentejo initiative, at Expo Dubai 2020, between the 8th and 11th of February. This was, to date, the largest internationalization mission in the region promoted by ADRAL – Alentejo Regional Development Agency.
During four days, the institutional mission – composed by aicep Portugal Global, managers of the Industrial and Logistics Zone of Sines, APS – Administration of the Ports of Sines and Algarve, ARPTA – Regional Agency for Tourism Promotion of Alentejo, the Municipality of Ponte de Sor, the Municipality of Santiago do Cacém, the Municipality of Sines and ADRAL – held presentations at the international fair and numerous meetings with entities and companies located in Dubai, which resulted in the signing of important memoranda of understanding for the future development of the region.
Of note, the Aeronautics cluster’s visit to Jetex, a global leader in executive aviation services, and the signing of a memorandum of understanding and cooperation between PLM Middle East, based in the United Arab Emirates, and the Municipality of Ponte de Sor, to the creation of the Accelera program, creating the first incubator and acceleration platform for companies and startups in the areas of aviation and tourism, based in the municipality.
In the axis of Tourism, ARPTA – Agência de Desenvolvimento Turística do Alentejo introduced the region to the two largest tour operators in Dubai and signed a memorandum of understanding with PLM MIDDLE EAST, based in the United Arab Emirates, to be present at the 8th Edition of Arab Aviantion Summit, between February 28 and March 1, 2022, in a joint action to promote the Alentejo destination to more than 600 tourist agents and distribution networks that represent a market of around four and a half million consumers with a high level of purchasing power. purchase.
Regarding Ports & Logistics, aicep Global Parques and the Port of Sines signed a manifest of investment interest with the oil company ENOC – Emirates National Oil Company to develop the areas of transport and storage of petroleum products, such as fuel for aircraft (jet fuel).
“The participation in Invest in Alentejo’s mission was a fruitful opportunity to promote the Port and Industrial Complex of Sines in a transversal context of the various axes in which we are investing: energy, logistics and energy transition. The joint promotion of the Alentejo region generates synergies, benefiting the attraction of more investment. A word of appreciation for ADRAL’s commitment and professionalism in organizing this mission.”, highlights Isabel Caldeira Cardoso, vice-president of the aicep Global Parques executive committee.
For José Luís Cacho, President of the Port of Sines, “the project “Invest in Alentejo” brings together a group of entities that have the capacity to enhance the development of the Alentejo region. The Port of Sines is very interested in being associated with this initiative because of the opportunities that can be created. Inserted in the main international logistics chains, Sines is the natural port of entry and exit for goods in its hinterland. Our mission is to serve the economy of the country and, of course, the region where we are.”
“The participation of the Alentejo Tourism Promotion Agency in the Business Mission to Dubai, taking advantage of the context of a special opportunity created by the Portuguese presence at the World Expo taking place there, allowed for the signaling of real business opportunities for companies in this sector with intervention in the Alentejo, having identified the products, sales channels and Tour Operators capable of contributing to the affirmation of the Alentejo in Dubai. The multi-sectoral composition of the Business Mission allowed the communication of a competitive Alentejo in different economic areas, in a multidisciplinary model of capturing business opportunities capable of generating synergies between sectors of strategic importance for the development of the region.”, highlights the Executive Director of Tourism. from Alentejo, António Lacerda.
“Attracting investment to our territory has always been seen by this executive as a priority and as one of the engines of growth that we have witnessed. This growth is achieved by contacting entities, demonstrating the competitive advantages that companies have in opening production units or knowledge development centers in Portugal, more specifically in one of the centers where companies in the sector already exist, benefiting from the synergies that the territory offers,” highlights the vice-president of the Municipality of Ponte de Sor, Rogério Alves.
“When ADRAL decided to organize a mission to Expo 2020, it was very clear that Sines had to be present. For a municipality with the openness and potential of this territory, internationalization makes perfect sense. With this presence in Dubai, we made known the our values to potential stakeholders that we would not have reached otherwise and we have established contacts that may bear fruit in the future,” highlights the president of the Municipality of Sines, Nuno Mascarenhas.
“It was undoubtedly an excellent opportunity to promote and enhance our Alentejo, naturally also the Municipality of Santiago do Cacém, and which allowed us to affirm the Alentejo as a destination of excellence for foreign direct investment. Direct contact with local and international agents, in the various areas that we intend to promote, in the particular case of Santiago do Cacém, Tourism, Agroindustry and Energy, allowed us to establish an important bridge that could attract future investments relevant to the economic and social development of the region. our Region,” highlights the president of the Municipality of Santiago do Cacém, Álvaro Beijinha.
“With a world-renowned cultural heritage and one of the best preserved regions in Europe, the Alentejo brings together in its immensity a world of real opportunities to explore. Évora, a candidate city for the European Capital of Culture in 2027 and a differentiated tourist destination, has in aeronautics, electronics and agribusiness, emerging sectors in terms of technological specialization with remarkable export potential. Investing in the Alentejo is, therefore, a safe bet with the guarantee of quality that distinguishes us,” highlights the vice-president of the Municipality of Évora, Alexandre Varela.
“ADRAL – Alentejo Regional Development Agency, together with the strategic partners of the Invest In Alentejo initiative, which it leads, organized the Invest In Alentejo Week at the Portugal Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai. This union of efforts between representative entities from different sectors and from all the Alentejo sub-regions, always guided by the development and promotion of the Region, represents the continuity of a partnership work that has been developed, which we hope will continue each with more cohesion, counting on all the agents and entities in the region, counting on the entire Alentejo,” highlights the president of ADRAL, João Maria Grilo. The Invest in Alentejo initiative’s mission is to promote the Alentejo internationally, focusing on key sectors associated with the domains of the regional smart specialization strategy (EREI), the existing equipment and resources in the region, with the aim of attracting investment and strengthening the region’s positioning in the global market.
