Reason Why Set Up Business in Slovakia
Slovakia, officially called the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country located in the central region of Europe. Slovakia borders five other European countries: Poland, Hungary, Ukraine, Austria, and the Czech Republic. It is also home to a population of approximately 5.5 million people. Slovakia is strategically located in the heart of Central Europe. It is also acting as the great access point to over 110 million consumers. Then, to set up business in Slovakia is a great choice.
Slovakia’s Economy Overview
Slovakia is a member of many multilateral organizations. These organizations are the European Union (“EU”), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (“NATO”), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (“OECD”), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (“OSCE”), the United Nations (“UN”), the Council of Europe, the Central European Free Trade Agreement (“CEFTA”), the International Monetary Fund (“IMF”), the World Bank, the World Trade Organization (WTO), UNESCO, INTERPOL, and many other multilateral organizations. Slovakia is also a member of the EU Schengen Agreement that allows for the free movement of people.
On January 1, 2009, Slovakia adopted the euro (EUR) as its currency. It also made it the 16th member of the European Monetary Union. The decision enables Slovakia to have improved trade advantage with lower transaction costs, higher pricing transparency and greater monetary stability. Slovakia scored 65.0 in the economic freedom score, making Slovakia’s economy the 65th freest in the 2019 Index. The country’s economic freedom score ranked 32nd out of 44 European countries in the region. Though its overall score is below the regional average, its score is above the world average. The latest OECD Economic Outlook has revealed that Slovakia is poised to be one of the fastest-growing developed economies in the world in 2019 and 2020 due to its vibrant business climate.
Why Invest in Slovakia
Foreign investors see Slovakia as the ideal investment spot because of its political and economic stability, competitive and business-friendly tax regime, as well as the availability of a well-educated and highly skilled workforce with competitive labour costs. Slovakia’s strategic location between East and West has given it an edge as the logistic hub with great export potential. In fact, Slovakia has long been one of the key logistics hubs in Europe, providing instant access to neighbouring countries by the well-connected logistics network, be it by the road, river, rail, or air.
Positive ratings from international rating companies and the record of good rankings in World Bank’s Doing Business Report 2008 – 2013 are the important factors that attract the attention of foreign investors to invest in the country. Today, the best investment opportunities in Slovakia are found in sectors of R&D, design and innovation, technology centres, high-tech sectors and tourism.
The attractive investment environment of Slovakia is best attested by the influx of foreign investors and the increasing volume of foreign direct investment in the country. Then, below are the top reasons why foreign investors favour Slovakia as an investment destination.
- Vibrant investment environment.
- Political and economic stability
- Strategic geographic location with good export potential
- Highly skilled labour force with high productivity
- A wide selection of industrial land & offices
- Modern infrastructure network
- Availability of attractive investment incentives
All of these factors are appealing to foreign investors to consider Slovakia as one of the favourable investment destinations. Whoever looking for an opportunity to traipse into the EU market, then Slovakia could be the ideal investment destination with lots to offer!
