From May 8 to 12, Princess Astrid, representing the King, will lead an economic mission of Belgium to the United Kingdom (UK). With more than 400 participants, 214 companies and organizations and four days of activities in the Greater London Area, this mission will be one of the largest ever organized.
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Belgium and the UK are neighbors who share not only close geographic proximity, but also a historic trading relationship and an innovative spirit. The economic ties between Belgium and the UK are historical, intense and deeply intertwined. Trade between our countries has deep historical roots that date back to the Middle Age, such as the development of the garment industry and the import of wool from England. Today, the UK is our largest non-EU trading partner (fifth largest customer and eighth largest supplier), with historic sectors that include: chemicals, transport equipment, machinery and food products. In addition, the UK is also in the top 5 largest foreign investors in our country.
The economic fabric of our country has great similarities with that of the UK: the dominance of the service sector, the importance of SMEs, a high degree of globalization and good cooperation between the private sector, government and academia. The COVID-19 pandemic has proven the great importance of sectors such as health, biopharma and life science - also for our relationship with the UK: British research and Belgian production facilities were instrumental in containing the pandemic.
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The sectors that receive special attention in the program are:
Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals and Life Sciences
Agri-Food and Food Industry
Architecture and Construction
Transport and Logistics
Cleantech
These sectors are part of this economic mission, but of course the economic cooperation with the UK is broader. In the area of energy cooperation, there are opportunities in the development of infrastructure (interconnectors) and renewable energy (green hydrogen).
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