OREANDA-NEWS. Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas will meet with the heads of large Swedish companies operating in Estonia.

The Prime Minister will meet with the Swedish and Estonian top executives of Telia, SEB, Swedbank, Nordea, Tele2, Ragn-Sells, East Capital and Ericsson to attract more investments into Estonia and to increase trade.

Sweden is the biggest foreign investor in Estonia and the most important destination for Estonia’s exports. Swedish companies have invested 4.5 billion euros into Estonia, accounting for more than 25% of the foreign direct investments in Estonia. In September, exports to Sweden constituted 17% of Estonia’s total exports.

“Estonia is fast becoming a hub of innovation and development thanks to the ease of doing business and its favourable business environment. The Estonian business environment is recognised internationally as the most competitive,” said Rõivas, adding that a labour shortage was our biggest challenge. “We are looking for shared solutions in cooperation with companies in order to remain competitive. For example, making university programmes more flexible to better match skill supplies with labour market needs.”

The Prime Minister thanked major investors for their contributions to the Estonian economy. “A number of these companies have a long track record of operating in Estonia; we have grown together and they have contributed to the growth of our economy and society,” said Rõivas, adding that Swedish companies have set an example of corporate social responsibility.

Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas also introduced a round table of Swedish private and venture capital associations where investors from both countries discussed new avenues for cooperation.

Tonight, Rõivas will speak, along with Peter Eriksson, the Swedish Minister for Digital Development, and Johan Dennelind, the President and CEO at Telia, at the technology and start-up forum Telia Talks that discusses Europe’s future prospects and growth opportunities, and the development of a digital single market.

The Prime Minister is accompanied by a business delegation comprising of the representatives of 31 companies. The visit of the business delegation was prepared in cooperation with Enterprise Estonia.