Foreign Investments on the Rise in Santa Catarina

Interview with Rodrigo Prisco Paraíso, Manager of the Department for International Economics (Santa Catarina’s Foreign Affairs Office)

The State of Santa Catarina is now enjoying the fact that Brazil is receiving investments from abroad and the image of Brazil is thus improving. What are the main points of interest for foreign investors considering to come to Santa Catarina? What makes Santa Catarina attractive for foreign investments?

There are two main aspects.

The first one is regarding the logistical points. There are five ports in the State of Santa Catarina, two international airports and there are also many highways connecting the State. Besides that, Santa Catarina has a great geographical position as it is only 1 hour away by plane from Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro or Buenos Aires. So Santa Catarina is just in the middle of the two main financial centers of South America.

The second aspect is the colonization of the State of Santa Catarina. Our State has a European predominance – mainly German. Such predominance has helped to form a more bilingual population and also a better educated workforce, when compared to the rest of Brazil. This is an asset for the companies which are considering coming to Santa Catarina.

You mentioned the infrastructure, however, judging from talking to various people, the State’s infrastructure is still recognized as a weak point which the State has to improve.

The infrastructure is one of the key points for the whole Brazil. Since Lula came to office, it has been improving all over Brazil including Santa Catarina. Santa Catarina has the best logistical points within the Brazilian market. There are five ports in Santa Catarina whereas Sao Paulo has only one port. Such advantage gives us speed for all the products that need to pass and travel in and out of the State. There are many highways connecting the western parts of Santa Catarina with its center, or north with south. Santa Catarina is very well interconnected. If Brazil needs to invest in the infrastructure, it needs to invest more than Santa Catarina. We know we have to improve and we are working on that. But, for the moment, we have the advantage of a well-developed infrastructure.

There are many ongoing investments in Santa Catarina such as the BMW investment which will result in the first BMW factory in Latin America. Could you tell us more about some other investments?

Santa Catarina has a very diverse economy with metal-mechanics in the northern parts, textiles in the center and technological industry in Florianopolis (the capital). Ceramics, agricultural, pork and poultry industries are also very strong in Santa Catarina. Thanks to the metal-mechanics center in Joinville we have attracted many companies – BMW being the main one. The arrival of BMW to Santa Catarina will be a new boom, an emblematic point for the State. The State of Santa Catarina will prove that it has the capacity to receive major companies from segments that we perhaps were not used to – this is also one of the main characteristics of the State: entrepreneurship. Santa Catarina covers only 1,1% of the Brazilian territory, so we have always had to be creative to keep and advance the development of the State`s economy.

What would be the best investment that you would like to receive in the future? If you had the choice, if you could select, what would you be looking for?

The Government has aimed for technology, especially new technologies, and this is the main target of Santa Catarina. As we are a small State, we are looking for products that have a lot of aggregated technology and price.

Your work is to help the companies which come to Santa Catarina. How do you help them to choose the best location? Could you describe your work in more detail?

At first, we introduce the State to companies and potential investors. We introduce them Santa Catarina in geographical, logistical and economical terms. We also touch upon the State’s colonization. Once the company says what they are interested in, we help them to select an area of the State and then help them with different issues environmental, fiscal and others, which they may encounter. The Secretariat will accompany the company/the investor until they settle down here in Santa Catarina. So that the State’s structure is efficient and you actually don’t lose pace. This is very important as the investor usually needs to start working and operating as soon as possible.

How do you perceive the work of the Foreign Affairs Office? How do you compare yourself with other similar bodies? Are you more effective? How useful is your help offered to investors?

The State is the main asset. What I mean by the State is its people and its territory. We have already had in our political culture – or let’s say in our public administration culture – the aim of helping private sector and attracting investors. As we are such a small State compared to the other Brazilian States, we have always had to be creative. Whenever we have a change in the government, that cultural line is still present, since the 1970s, and it has improved a lot during the last 10 years. So we have to make sure the investor receives this historical contextualization.

In addition, our job is to make sure that the investor is never left alone, that none of his questions or demands are left unanswered. Since we are a secretariat that has to work as a mediator between the international private sector and the structure of the State, I believe we are able to make a contribution regarding reducing the time for feedback to the investor.

What are the main challenges that the Foreign Affairs Office has to tackle in connection with the foreign investors who consider an investment in Santa Catarina?

Our main challenge in this regard is to show to investors that even tough Santa Catarina isn’t at the economical heart of Brazil, it is, nevertheless, very close to the center. Furthermore, Santa Catarina can compensate this, thanks to the logistics and infrastructure available in the State. Even though other States in Brazil would give more fiscal incentives than us, what we would not give in the form of incentives would be compensated with the workforce provided. Thus, the logistical aspect of the State and our workforce would compensate the incentives and actually in the long term, the investor would get higher quality results.

How do you project yourself in the next 2 to 5 years? What will be your plans in order to attract international companies to Santa Catarina?

I believe the word spreads quite quickly in the market. If we keep our focus on one point which is technology, and especially biotechnology, that will characterize the State in the future. The idea of this government is implementing the industrialization of parts of the State that are more agricultural. We don’t have any urban concentration, so in the future we can have more industries than we have today. As the country will grow, we will grow and acquire too. Further economical variety and greater speed will be the main assets of the State of Santa Catarina. That is our aim so that we can have in the end an aggregated product and grow in that direction, not within the commodity area.

What would be your final message to the (international) investors?

Beside its geographical and logistical points, the State of Santa Catarina has a spirit of entrepreneurship which is considered to be very crucial. The State is prepared to welcome different investments and different cultures of people. We are ready.