World Report

One of the most economically dynamic regions in both Italy and Europe, Veneto’s success rests on a strong entrepreneurial spirit

nce one of the poorest areas in Italy, Veneto is the country’s fastest growing region, and one of the wealthiest. It consistently tops Italy’s regional growth league with an annual increase in GDP above both the Italian and European average.

Home to around 8 per cent of Italy’s population, Veneto produces approximately 12 per cent of national manufacturing output and 15 per cent of the country’s exports.

The economy is based on a network of highly flexible small and medium-sized businesses – around 447,000 firms, or one for every 10 inhabitants. One in every five of Italy’s industrial clusters is located in Veneto, producing products of top international quality including textiles, clothing, furniture, footwear, gold, silver, glass, food, wine and industrial machinery.

MARINO FINOZZI
Regional Councillor for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

‘We are changing our production system from extensive to intensive’

FRANCESCO BORGA
Director General of Confindustria Veneto

‘Foreign investors will find an entrepreneurial spirit here’

The prospect of increased competition within an enlarged European Union has prompted new moves to strengthen the economy. Research and development (R&D) and innovation are regarded as the keys to growth, while other priorities include education and healthcare development. “We are aiming to grow through innovation and technological research,” says Luigi Rossi Luciani, President of Confindustria Veneto, the regional industrial federation.

Marino Finozzi, Regional Councillor for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, says Veneto is working to become even more competitive. “We are changing our production system from extensive to intensive. The added value of products has to increase. The emerging countries like the Eastern European nations and areas of the Mediterranean are strongly increasing their production capacity, but are mostly not reaching the level of quality that we can offer.”
Agriculture remains a strong point of Veneto’s economy, notably for livestock, vine growing and wine production. Under an EU-backed rural development plan, the region is investing in training, quality control, marketing and providing information to consumers and producers.

Giancarlo Conta, Regional Councillor for Agriculture, Handicrafts and Commerce, says: “For the last three years, we have been organising workshops and taking our companies abroad, mainly to Far East countries like Japan and China, and mainly representing wine products.”

Products of top international quality are manufactured by Veneto’s small businesses

Francesco Borga, Director General of Confindustria Veneto, emphasises the importance of the process of internationalisation and of forming links with countries in Northern and Eastern Europe, the former USSR and Far East Asia. “Foreign investors and partners will find here an entrepreneurial spirit and a tradition of hard work, a region interested in research and innovation, interested in moving forward,” he says.

The regional investment company, Veneto Sviluppo, is promoting opportunities for foreign investment and partnerships in the region. Company President, Paolo Sinigaglia, says: “Analyses we have made with a number of companies in China, Japan, Hong Kong and even the United States, show that Veneto is considered highly attractive.”

A significant advantage enjoyed by the region is its strategic position in Northern Italy. Sergio Bellato, President of Unindustria Treviso, the industrial association of Treviso Province, says: “We have the advantages of being located close to Europe and of being a crossroads to the Eastern European countries.”