Stammtisch
Monday, October 10 2022
12.30 - 14.30
Prague
On Monday, October 10, 2022, the Association for Foreign Investments - AFI organized a traditional Stammtisch meeting in the premises of the V Zátiší restaurant. This time, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany Andreas Künne accepted the invitation. His participation was very welcomed for the AFI association, not only because Germany is a neighbouring country of the Czech Republic, but the cooperation between the two countries is very active on an economic level and crucial in the border regions. The importance of this meeting was also confirmed by the presence of several honorary members of the AFI association, as well as the participation of representatives of AFI partner companies, the state agency CzechInvest and also German investors, who are by far the largest number of foreign investors in the Czech Republic.
In his opening remarks, Andreas Künne described the relationship between Germany and the Czech Republic, the importance of their cooperation in the business and economic fields, but above all he highlighted the similarity of both countries in their strategies and direction of thinking. Among current strategic topics, he spoke about the importance of nuclear energy, which is one of the solutions to the current energy crisis. He mentioned that the trigger of the problems surrounding energy sources is the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has an impact not only on the business sector, but on the population itself. Therefore, the solution to the energy crisis is not only economic but also moral support. He also pointed to the incorporation of sustainability in business and to focus more on future energy sources.
In questions for the ambassador, current topics appeared that mainly concern the Czech Republic and have a fundamental influence on the projects of German investors in the Czech Republic. This is, for example, the unpreparedness of industrial zones or their construction, which is hindered by the lengthy processing of building and other permits or the expansion of infrastructure.
Kamil Blažek, chairman of the Association for Foreign Investments - AFI, who moderated the entire discussion, also initiated a debate on the topic of the lack of employees. This could be partly solved by the complete abolition of quotas for the employment of foreign workers and, in parallel, with the establishment of security measures, faster legalization of the employment of foreign workers and the related optimization of fees.
We thank the guests for accepting the invitation, all participants for their presence and for the excellent hospitality and service of our supporting partner restaurant V Zátiší.