Opinion piece
According to foreign investors, the investment climate in Latvia reached historically the lowest value ever – 1.9 points out of 5. Ventspils City Council opposition deputy Aivis Landmanis notes the root of the problem lies in the inability to resolve topics related to good reputation.
“The president and prime minister both said they were surprised about the whole affair – how did this awful thing happen, they day. You know, I am shocked by your surprise about such things,” Aivis Landmanis wrote on Facebook.
“Is it possible we don’t know what good reputation means? There’s a building behind me, Ventspils City Council it’s called. You know who lives there? Correct? A man accused of severe crimes and under US sanctions together with his colleagues. They’ve been dictating rules for over 30 years. Yes, yes – the same man whose collected votes helped you become President and you – the Prime Minister. So is this good reputation? Is this the way to attract investments?”
“Well, yes, there are also the special flights of our Mr. Kariņš. But there is something else – no one in this country is interested to hear what happened to those so-called agencies – Ventspils Development Agency and Business Development Association. Tell us, if you truly care about national interests. Listen to your colleague Ģirts Valdis Kristovskīs. He will tell you what you don’t know. Kariņš’s special flights are mere child’s play when compared to what is being covered up now,” says Aivis Landmanis.
BNN previously reported that the investment climate in Latvia, according to FICIL, reached it’s lowest level in history, as concluded in the FICIL Sentiment Index 2023 by Stockholm School of Economics in Riga and Foreign Investors’ Council in Latvia.
Compared to 2022, the attractiveness of Latvia’s investment climate went down by 0.4 points last year.
Zlata Elksnina Zaščirinska, Chairperson of the Board of the Foreign Investors Council in Latvia (FICIL), informed that foreign investors in Latvia are cautious. On top of that, there was a drop in the proportion of investors who plan to invest in Latvia in the future – from 79% in 2022 to 67% in 2023.
Businessmen also point towards the problems that have remained unresolved for years that slow both Latvia’s competitiveness and attraction of new investments.
These problems include the shortage of labour force, low quality of education, high level of bureaucracy and a lack of a mechanism for the attraction of investments.
“The high level of bureaucracy for businesses leads to a large amount of work and high costs. This hurts the end consumer. Defining the long-term goal in Latvia’s challenge. This would help define a clear strategy on the necessary changes. Having a vision is important for investors to feel safe and welcome in Latvia,” said Elksniņa-Zaščirinska.
Also read: Foreign investors give Latvia’s investment climate historically the lowest score
Follow us on Facebook and X!