THE KEY to Lisbon’s future competitiveness lies in its ability to attract both foreign and national investment. This was the conclusion of Lisbon Câmara vice president, Dr. Carmona Rodrigues, who inaugurated the second international conference ‘Lisbon Competitive City’ recently.
In his keynote speech, Carmona said that an increase in Lisbon’s ability to be competitive would “not only attract more investment but would also help export its companies”.
He talked about the high standard of life, for those living, working and studying in Lisbon, and the city’s ability to attract major international events, such as Euro 2004 and MTV Awards, while mentioning that the political, administrative and legal systems were having to adapt to new realities. “Open discussion between political figures and private business partners is essential in raising both the city’s and the country’s competitiveness,” he added. “Considering that Lisbon today is the country’s biggest university city with over 140,000 students, eight per cent of which are foreigners, we should capitalise on this to ensure that Lisbon becomes a centre of excellence in the exportation of technology, science, services and culture.”
He also reaffirmed the city’s commitment to the high-speed rail link between Lisbon-Porto and Lisbon-Madrid, as well as the expansion of the city’s metro and the improvement of international airport facilities. C.G.
