SARIO results for 2023

SARIO brought new jobs to the regions and mediated thousands of business negotiations for Slovak companies.

Slovakia is perceived by investors as an attractive business center and Slovak companies as reliable and competitive business partners as evidenced by the results of the SARIO agency for 2023.

The Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO) concluded 25 investment projects in the amount of EUR 1.23 billion and with the potential to create almost 4,400 new direct jobs, implemented more than 80 events to support foreign trade and the internationalization of Slovak small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

"Systematic, agile work, practice-appreciated quality of services provided by the agency, and cooperation with relevant partners are behind these results," said Robert Šimončič, SARIO CEO.

As part of the year-on-year comparison with 2022, the agency received a higher number of investors coming from overseas - the USA, Canada, and also from the Republic of Korea. Germany has traditionally been the strongest European investor. The majority of projects are from the automotive industry (including electromobility) and mechanical engineering.

LINK SARIO Results for 2023 — Infographic (PDF, 1MB)

Almost two-thirds of the closed investment projects go to the regions of Central and Eastern Slovakia, while the share of newly created jobs in all SARIO projects is up to 73%.

"I am glad that a significant part of new investments goes to regions with higher unemployment, which allows us to constantly reduce regional differences and raise the standard of living of Slovakia's residents. We also register in these locations interest among potential investors who could create up to 20,200 new jobs," added Robert Šimončič.

Data on the closed project of the SARIO agency as well as 60 projects in progress prove that investors from all over the world continue to consider Slovakia a potentially suitable location for the placement of their operations in terms of business cooperation in the fields of production, as well as in R&D or shared service centers.

The agency has prepared dozens of opportunities and events to support Slovak business potential in foreign markets, while many have already brought concrete successes. The hundreds of companies that have used our pro-export and internationalization support services in the past year come from various sectors and often bring innovative products and services.

For the year 2023, the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency organized 31 business missions, realized 6 own cooperation events, ensured the participation of Slovak companies at 11 international fairs, prepared 59 educational activities, and processed 109 business inquiries.

"Within the framework of the development of foreign trade and the internationalization of Slovak companies, we work with several tools. More than 1,000 Slovak companies took advantage of the opportunity to present their potential and assert themselves on global markets, completed thousands of business negotiations, established new contacts and successfully generated specific results and partnerships," concluded Robert Šimončič.

In addition to comprehensive support of Slovak export entities at global markets, the agency also focused on activities for initiating the transfer of innovative technologies into production practice, awareness, new opportunities creation, and functional cooperation platforms.

The goals and priorities of the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency for 2024 remain the same — support of the inflow of foreign investments with high added value and export potential to Slovakia, as well as support of the export of Slovak products, services, and technologies to fast-growing markets in the spirit of Slovakia's brand messages.

PHOTO HN Pavol Funtál