Mayor Rafael Greca launched, in the afternoon of this Wednesday (20/9), Invest Curitiba, the economic attractiveness program of the town hall and Curitiba Development and Innovation Agency to attract new businesses to the city, expanding national and international investment opportunities in the innovation ecosystem, the Pinhao Valley.
Alongside the Vice Mayor and Secretary of State for Cities, Eduardo Pimentel, and the President of Curitiba AgencyDario Paixão, Greca delivered to the municipality another tool to promote the city in the commercial and industrial sector throughout Brazil and the world.
The launch took place at the Salão Brasil of Curitiba City Hall and also included the signing of the memorandum of intent between the Curitiba agency and the Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce (CCBC), marking the first international promotional action of Invest Curitiba.
“Curitiba sought international resources to finance innovative companies. Anyone who wants to invest in innovation programs will have Invest Curitiba as an instrument, which will help them, within the framework of Pinhao Valleyto format projects that make our ecosystem, increasingly, a wheel of prosperity,” underlined the mayor.
Investing in Curitiba
Oh Invest Curitiba has its own website with information on the commercial potential of the capital of Paraná, in three languages (Portuguese, English and Spanish). The website is also a gateway for the first contacts of companies that want to establish themselves in the city, establish partnerships or invest in solutions created by startups and companies from Curitiba, thus contributing to the internationalization of the capital of Paraná.
Voted smartest city in Brazil and international reference for its programs of innovation, sustainability, public transport, quality of life and environmental preservation, Curitiba has a promising environment for new businesses and international financial contributions.
“We are a city that supports entrepreneurs and Invest Curitiba strengthens this support for the entire productive sector of the city. We create solutions that are exported around the world and we want to contribute to strengthening the city’s economy,” said Vice Mayor Eduardo Pimentel.
Doing business with Canada
The signing of the memorandum of intent between Agência Curitiba and CCBC had the participation of Invest Alberta, an agency that plays the same role of business attraction as the Curitiba program in the Canadian province. Since 2020, Invest Alberta has supported the commitment of nearly $20 billion in investment to the Canadian province.
“This exchange with the world makes Curitiba the best place to invest and the best city in Brazil right now to live. Today marks the dialogue between the South and the North of the world, between Brazil and Canada. There is much to learn on both sides of the world and much to do. We can do it by broadening horizons,” celebrated the Mayor of Curitiba.
The protocol will generate cooperation agreements between Curitiba and Canadian companies, universities and investors; as well as actions and exchange events and the city’s relationship with technology, innovation and economic development institutions in Canada.
The partnership signed this Wednesday was made possible thanks to the trip of the president of Agência Curitiba, Dario Paixão, in June, to the Alberta region, to learn more about the innovation ecosystem of this region and strengthen relationships with new businesses.
Alberta
A Canadian delegation comprised of representatives from CCBC, Invest Alberta and other academic, financial and investment institutions from the North American country, attended the event to witness the signing of the document.
Alberta is the fourth largest Canadian province and its economic vocation revolves around livestock, oil and agriculture. The capital Edmonton and Calgary are among the main cities.
The province of the North American country has more than 900 companies expert in the development of clean technologies, including startups that work with oil and gas companies, in addition to a structure of institutions that provide access to financing. He is also known for using modern technologies to increase production and efficiency in the agricultural sector.
“We are very happy with this partnership that brings together the business and innovation ecosystems of both,” underlined the director of institutional relations of the Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce (CCBC), Paulo de Castro Reis.
Reis also highlighted the business potential between the capital of Paraná and Alberta due to the similarity of activities. “Our sectors of economic strength are the same: energy transition, agrotechnology companies, biotechnology solutions and innovative thinking for the use of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence,” he said.
Agenda in Curitiba
This Thursday (September 21), the Canadian delegation will visit Curitiba’s smart city programs and players in the city’s innovation ecosystem, such as Muralha Digital and Fazenda Urbana. During the tour, visits to actors from the Pinhao Valleyas startup incubators and accelerators, such as Habitat, from the Federation of Industries of Paraná (Fiep) and Hotmilk, from PUCPR.
The Alberta delegation in Curitiba includes: Lynette Tremblay, Director of Operations, Invest Alberta; Cecilia Oteiza Ayres, investment attraction manager at Invest Alberta; Jeff Bell, director of investment attraction at Edmonton Global; Associate Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences at the University of Alberta, David Brassier; Cristian Gonzalez Paez, associate director of the University of Alberta; Craig Warden, Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo Program Manager, Industrial Business and Investment Attraction; the Director of Clinical Affairs, Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation and Innovation at Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation (API); Julienne Weber; Biostatistical API Fernanda Talarico; and the director of the CCBC West region, Patrícia Garcia da Rosa.
Also present at the Invest Curitiba launch were: Municipal Secretary of Planning, Finance and Budget, Cristiano Hotz; the senior advisor for international relations at the City Hall, Rodolpho Zanin Feijó; councilors Mauro Bobato, Rodrigo Reis, Bruno Pessuti, Pierpaolo Petruziello, Indiara Barbosa and Serginho do Posto; the ambassador of the Representative Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Paraná, Ligia Maria Scherer; the honorary consul of Luxembourg in Curitiba, Andrea Vianna; the honorary consul of the Federal Republic of Germany in Curitiba, Andreas Hoffrichter; the honorary consul of Romania in Curitiba, Carolina Mariah Henning Sanches; the counselor at the Consulate General of Japan in Curitiba, Kumiko Abe; the president of the Brazil-Portugal Chamber of Commerce, Antônio Athayde; the vice-president of the Brazil-Portugal Chamber of Commerce, Adriano Greco da Fonseca; the honorary consul of the Russian Federation in Curitiba, Acef Said; the director of ADVB-PR, Gyslaine Muraro; President of the City Council for Innovation, Science and Technology, Marcia Krama; the president of the FAS, Maria Alice Erthal; the president of the IMT, Tatiana Turra; the president of ICI, Mauricio Pimentel; the president of the Commercial Association of Paraná (ACP), Antônio Gilberto Darregone; the director of Invest Paraná, Giancarlo Rocco; the president of LIDE-PR, Heloísa Garrett; representatives of Fomento-PR, Fecomércio-PR, businesses and startups in the city.
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