Catalonia and Argentina to collaborate and promote competitiveness and innovation among businesses in both regions

The Government of Catalonia, through ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment, the agency for business competitiveness under the Ministry of Business and Labour, has entered into an agreement with the province of Córdoba, Argentina, to collaborate in promoting competitiveness, innovation, and internationalization among businesses in both regions. Córdoba is the country's second-most populous province and one of the region’s key economic hubs.

The agreement was signed last Friday by Albert Castellanos, the Secretary for Business and Competitiveness and CEO of ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment, and Juan Schiaretti, the Governor of the province of Córdoba. On the Argentine side, the agreement is coordinated through the Ministry of Science and Technology of the province of Córdoba and the Córdoba Competitiveness Agency.

The goal of this initiative is to demonstrate the willingness to cooperate in order to strengthen economic relationships and capabilities in the fields of innovation and the knowledge economy in both regions. Thanks to this agreement, institutional support and technical assistance actions will be developed, experiences will be shared, and public policies and support programs will be implemented in these strategic areas. Thus, both territories are committed to contributing to the development of business competitiveness, productivity, and internationalization, as well as to the growth of the startup and cluster ecosystem and its expansion into foreign markets.

According to Castellanos, "Catalonia has a strong commercial presence in South America, particularly in countries like Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Brazil. With agreements like the one we are signing today with the province of Córdoba, we aim to go one step further and strengthen our ties in increasingly high-value-added areas related to innovation, technology, and the knowledge economy.”

On the other hand, the Governor of the Province of Córdoba, Juan Schiaretti, assured that "this agreement is important because ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment has a great experience in how to improve production, how to improve the competitiveness of the Catalan economy and create more jobs. And what we need in Córdoba is to have more jobs that are well paid; hence our interest in advancing in competitiveness". This collaboration with ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment "means acquiring the experience that they have developed and also being able to transmit the experience of what we are doing in Córdoba," he added.

Trade relationships between Catalonia and Argentina

Catalan exports to Argentina increased by 48% in 2022 compared to the previous year, totaling 417 million euros. In the first half of 2023, Catalan exports to the South American country have grown by 2.3% year-on-year, reaching 203.3 million euros. In fact, over 600 Catalan companies regularly export to the Argentinian market. With the aim of facilitating the expansion projects of Catalan companies in Argentina, the Government opened an International Trade and Investment Office of ACCIÓ-Catalonia Trade & Investment in Buenos Aires in 1989.