Luxembourg delegation in Latvia: Economic partnerships and support for Ukraine
On the second and third day of Luxembourg's State visit to Latvia, the economic delegation intensified talks with their host country and visited a rehab centre west of Riga.
Economic partnerships expanded
20 companies from Luxembourg and 50 companies from Latvia met at a conference in Riga. "We have €90 million in trade with Latvia," said Minister of the Economy Franz Fayot. Although still much less than Lithuania (€236 million) and Estonia (€234 million) in 2021, the figure is growing.
There is a lot of potential in forestry and the wood industry, said Fayot. As half of Latvia is covered by trees, and the demand for wood managed sustainably in Luxembourg is high, this could become a thriving market.
Meanwhile, Luxembourg could support Estonia with digital technology. "We have a company in Luxembourg that can scan an entire forest," explains Carlo Thelen, General Director of the Chamber of Commerce. "This is interesting for climate change as well as the sale of wood. The robot can analyse the state of the trees and decide, whether they are more suited as furniture or firewood."
Latvia, too, invests into digitalisation and cybersecurity. However both countries are stuck with the same bottleneck: a shortage in qualified personnel.
