Welcome to the Official page of the Presidency of the Portuguese Republic

It is my great pleasure to preside at the inaugural act of the two Embraer modern production units for aeronautical parts, in the centre of this beautiful region of the Alentejo.

The relevance of the presence in Portugal of Embraer, one of the larges aerospace companies in the world, deserves adequate recognition. Although not their first investment in our Country, it will surely be that which demanded greater ambition and vision of the future.

It is, after all, the decision to locate in Portuguese territory the company’s largest international investment. A firm and trusting stake in the future, it well reflects the spirit of the fraternal relations between Portugal and Brazil and will contribute to heighten productivity and competitiveness through technology, qualification and innovation. This is the right path for Portugal’s economic recovery.

With the start-up of Embraer’s operations, Portugal will now join the exclusive group of countries producing primary aeronautical structures. The city of Évora and this region are, from now on, included in the world map of aerospace industry.

These units, equipped with the most advanced industrial production technology, will fulfil a strategic role in Embraer’s options for future growth. And it is thus especially gratifying to note that Portuguese workers will be the major contributors towards this purpose.

This investment will create, until 2015, approximately 600 direct qualified positions and should also create more than 1,400 indirect jobs.

Further, this investment will especially bring about relevant indirect effects on the national industrial fabric, since these units will be an anchor around which will possibly be structured the development of the still recent Portuguese aerospace sector. We are thus referring to a unique opportunity of assertion in an area of great skills and high added value.

Ladies and gentlemen,

For Évora, of course, this is a very special moment. Birth is given here, today, in a region with an economic development mainly based on agriculture, tourism and services, to a centre of technological qualification and innovation with enormous relevance for Portuguese industry.

In a region suffering from progressive depopulation, the inception of a strategy of entrepreneurial development and the drawing out of intelligent and reproductive investment may not only become a victory over fatalism, but should also open up new horizons.

Examples such as that of Embraer and others which we are encountering all over the country are demonstrative of how important it is to open up paths with clear and transparent strategic options, that replace doubts with careful judgement, unreasonable fears with realistic courage.

My presence in this ceremony has equally the purpose to transmit and illustrate the confident view I have over the potential of the Portuguese economy. And it is exactly within this picture that I want to call attention towards the crucial importance of quality foreign investment for the effective resolution of the imbalances that have affected our country.

This is not a utopian message, but the deep conviction that Portugal has the capability to achieve success, and that it is also the duty of the President of the Republic to contribute towards a favourable and constructive climate and for the improvement of the Country’s external image, all of these indispensable requisites for us to overcome current challenges.

With reference to foreign direct investment, the positive effects that are more or less akin to it are well known. In general terms, external productive investment tends to ease the diffusion of technological expertise, a positive impact that can spread to all the economy; it creates favourable conditions towards the profitability of other investments and the launching of new products; it eases the conquering of new markets and is, otherwise, a means for financing the economy, either directly or through the net exports it may generate.

In addition, much of the quality foreign investment is linked with the use of qualified employment, and is thus not just a factor for the creation of employment but also a stimulus for our youth, families and educational institutions in order to strengthen their drive in the acquisition and transmission of the necessary skills.

In latter years, Portugal has shown favourable results in the field of foreign investment and, more recently, that has also been the case with exports and external balances. In spite of all this, however, such results are still not sufficient and are, in some ways, transient.

The positive route that exports have achieved shows the determination of our entrepreneurs in the search for new external markets, but it also reflects a deeper understanding of the importance to develop internationally competitive products, both for the companies’ feasibility and for the sustainability of economic growth.

The truth is that only a clear redeployment of our external activity and the mustering of external funds will allow the re-launching of growth and the financing of the economy.

I thus consider that capturing quality direct foreign investment is an essential factor for the consolidation of this route for the uncovering and internationalization of the Portuguese economy, in addition to its being one of the most solid and effective devices for the strengthening of our competitiveness and for the improvement of our growth perspectives.

It is thus my belief that all measures must be taken in order to attract and maintain quality foreign investment.

Besides, I would appreciate that all the Portuguese, starting with politicians and social agents, considered investment in general terms and, particularly, direct foreign investment, as key factors for the resolution of our structural and extrinsic issues. Investments are, please allow me to insist, truly fundamental for Portugal and the Portuguese.

Thus the fundamental need for the existence of a climate of stability and confidence in the economy and in Portuguese society, and of a favourable environment for investment and national employment. Without trust, companies will not invest or create employment. Without a climate of expectation and credibility, difficulties in obtaining finance will accrue and interest borne by the State and by the domestic companies will increase.

Portugal is nowadays largely dependent from external factors. We need international creditors. We need international markets. We have to be competitive. Our credibility and our external image are determining factors for our future.

We must be well aware of the decisive role of private enterprise and of entrepreneurial initiative, be these national or foreign. It ultimately depends upon them to muster investment, create jobs and increase production, exploiting new markets and products, taking advantage of the effective potential of the Portuguese economy, of the resources we have available and of the global economic changes that offer unparalleled opportunities.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The opening of Embraer’s ambitious project clearly illustrates the new dynamics that characterize the global economy and the opportunities based upon the mustering of knowledge and resources spread all over the World.

I highly commend Embraer for the vision of the future and salute all those responsible for the commissioning of these two industrial facilities.

At an especially joyful moment for Évora, I rejoice with this sign of trust in the Portuguese economy and with the possibilities it brings to our industry and to our workers.

On Portugal’s behalf, I wish the greatest of success to this project.

Thank you very much.