Belgian Economic Mission to Brazil – Rio de Janeiro

From 22 November to 1 December, Her Royal Highness Princess Astrid of Belgium, representing His Majesty the King, will lead an economic mission to Brazil. A large delegation from various sectors will accompany her to São Paulo, the economic capital of the country, and Rio de Janeiro to promote Belgium’s image as an attractive partner and a gateway to the European market.

The second part of the mission will take place in Rio de Janeiro.
 

Thursday 28 November

The programme in Rio de Janeiro starts with a seminar on the role that the Belgian industry and Belgian ports can play in the decarbonisation of the Brazilian economy. Belgium’s North Sea Port invests in renewable energy projects like wind farms and green hydrogen, setting a benchmark for eco-friendly port practices. The Port of Antwerp-Bruges, one of Europe’s largest, is enhancing energy efficiency with carbon capture and storage, and electric and hydrogen-powered equipment.

The Business and Human Rights event, organised by the FPS Foreign Affairs, aims to promote a sustainable and inclusive economic transition by highlighting inspiring examples of collaboration in the social economy and impactful business. Rethinking the globalised economy and international markets in a sustainable way also means integrating the social and environmental dimension into business models.

Before the delegation visits the Botanical Garden, with a focus on enhancing biodiversity and sustainable practices, a seminar bringing together leading experts, policymakers, researchers, and industry stakeholders will explore the dynamic interplay between climate and health, highlighting the role of cutting-edge technologies in mitigating climate-related health risks. VITO, a leading independent research and technology organisation based in Belgium, and the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), South America’s largest public health institution which aims to promote health and social development, play the leading roles.

The official delegation will meet with the Governor of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Cláudio Bomfim de Castro e Silva and will witness a second signing ceremony which will show some concrete results of the Belgian-Brazilian academic and economic cooperation.

In the evening a Belgian Entertainment Showcase will be organised at the epic Cristo Redentor statue, where Barco and Dirty Monitor will showcase the knowhow of the Belgian entertainment sector in a message of friendship between Brazil and Belgium.
 

Friday 29 November

After a breakfast event where Belgian companies and their Brazilian partners can showcase their success stories and explain how they established themselves on the Brazilian market, the delegation will move to the Castelo Mourisco, seat of Fiocruz. Here, Fiocruz and the European Plotkin Institute for Vaccinology and Quantoom Biosciences, which are some of Belgium’s finest biotech and vaccine research institutions, participated in a seminar on the future of epidemics and vaccines.

More collaboration on vaccines: GSK in Belgium researches, develops and manufactures vaccines for over 160 countries and exports around 30 million doses of vaccines to Brazil on a yearly basis. The 40-year Belgian-Brazilian collaboration on vaccines will be celebrated on the occasion of the visit of HRH Princess Astrid.

Twenty years ago, the Belgian company Interbrew and the Brazilian brewer AmBev merged into InBev, which later went on to becoming the biggest beer company in the world. This success story of collaboration and investment between the two countries will be highlighted by a company visit and, of course, a beer tasting.

Following an official meeting with the recently re-elected mayor of Rio de Janeiro, HRH Princess Astrid and the delegation will witness the award winning ceremony of a Belgian-Brazilian game development competition. The event aims to create connections between Belgian and Brazilian academic institutions, video game studios and companies from the entertainment sector.

The full programme and all relevant details about the Belgian economic mission to Brazil are available on the official website: www.belgianeconomicmission.be.