EU – Baltic States, Forum, Innovations, Latvia, Technology

Photo: mfa.gov.lv

As LETA was told at the Foreign Ministry that in his address to the participants, Rinkevics thanked the World Federation of Free Latvians (WFFL) for its initiative to launch a series of such forums five years ago with the aim of involving the Latvian diaspora businesses in economic development in Latvia.

"The importance of the World Latvian Economics and Innovations Forum has only increased over these years: we in Latvia are increasingly exploiting the potential of our diaspora in a number of ways – not only as investors, but also in technology transfer and research. It is noteworthy that the first two forums took place in Riga, which was followed by Australia and the United States, and now the event has returned to Latvia. It is symbolic that Valmiera, one of Latvia's most dynamic cities, has been chosen as the location. The fast-growing economy over recent years has made us keenly aware of the issue of workforce availability and, consequently, remigration. The rapid economic growth in Valmiera has also created demand for professionals in all walks of life,” the minister said.

He added that the new Diaspora Law sets out the central role of local governments in attracting Latvians living abroad so that businesses in the thriving municipalities could also engage the skilled professionals they need. In many places, shortage of skilled staff is already preventing companies from developing to their full potential.

The foreign minister called for closer cooperation to be built between institutions in Latvia and diaspora organisations with a view to expanding Latvia's export capacity. "Therefore, I am happy that networking events at the forum bring together regional businesses and other professionals. Such events, for instance, have been organised in Europe by the European Latvian Association," Rinkevics said in conclusion.

The World Latvian Economics and Innovations Forum is taking place for the fifth time, and it has so far been held in Latvia, as well as Australia and the US.