Priorities of Economic Diplomacy Successfully Met in 2018
Bratislava, February 5 (TASR) – The priorities of economic diplomacy in 2018 were successfully achieved, the Foreign and European Affairs Ministry has stated in its extensive Report on the Status and Results of Economic Diplomacy in 2018.
This was helped by improved coordination of activities and cooperation between the main protagonists of economic diplomacy.
The Government will hold talks on the report on Wednesday.
Seventy-two heads of bilateral diplomatic missions were responsible for carrying out economic diplomacy. Representative offices in this regard provided free-of-charge services according to the so-called catalogue of services agreed on with the business sphere. Services to businesses were accompanied by the free-of-charge services of the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s business centre.
The network of Slovak economic diplomacy processed 1,728 requests from Slovak and foreign businesses for importing or exporting goods and services, carried out 279 presentation events, arranged 106 business missions directly or in cooperation with the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO)
and the Slovak Trade and Industrial Chamber (SOPK) and carried out 23 new projects financed from the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s Economic Diplomacy Scheme.
One important tool was business missions accompanying public officials on their working visits. Such missions took place in thirteen countries in 2018. “Slovakia was visited by business delegations from Greece, Iceland, Kenya and China. Examples of success were presidential visits to the USA, Norway, Slovenia and South Korea, which were focused on smart technologies and innovative solutions,” stated the ministry.
According to the document, tourism was an important part of economic diplomacy. Representative offices carried out presentation activities to showcase Slovakia as an attractive tourist destination. The activities included efforts aimed at broadening air routes with Slovak airports.
The ministry observed developments in the field of digital transformation, disruptive technologies (blockchain), artificial intelligence and other innovations. “It can’t be disputed that the fourth industrial revolution, digitisation and the dynamic introduction of new technologies will play a key role in advancing countries on a global scale,” stated the ministry.
