The Association for Foreign Investment (AFI) has appointed Ondřej Votruba to the newly created position of executive director of the AFI. He brings to the AFI many years of experience from international operations and cooperation with foreign investors gained mainly from the business and investment development agency CzechInvest. Kamil Blažek, chairman of the AFI, says: "By creating the new position of Executive Director, the AFI is approximating the system of operating used by other associations and chambers, where in addition to the top position of chairman, there is also an executive director who leads the organisation's agenda on a daily basis."
Ondřej Votruba (44) worked at CzechInvest for nine years, mainly in the Investment Division, and served as the CEO in his last year with the agency. In the international sphere, he is an expert in relations with Japan thanks to his experience with the Japanese government agency JETRO, working at CzechInvest’s foreign offices in Yokohama and Tokyo, as well as at the trading company Elematec, which is part of the Toyota group and was also his last job before he joined the Association for Foreign Investment. In the government sector, he also served as a deputy minister in two ministries.
In his new position, Ondřej Votruba, executive director of the Association for Foreign Investment, wants to focus primarily on the effective functioning of investment incentives: "We are living in a turbulent time when Europe is facing the biggest war since 1945, the energy crisis, the effects of COVID and record inflation, as well as the threat of gas shortages in the Czech Republic. Even at this time, however, "ordinary" life continues, and we may miss great opportunities in the background of larger events. One of the areas where I want to use my experience from working with investors is the activity aimed at successfully amending the Investment Incentives Act, because the last amendment from 2019 is dismal. Without a good amendment, we would miss the train in some areas. Furthermore, I would like, among other things, to establish the AFI as an association that can not only help foreign investors in the Czech Republic, but also Czech investors abroad. Thanks to such investments, our companies will be stronger."
Kamil Blažek, who remains the chairman of the Association for Foreign Investment, adds: "I am very pleased that Ondřej has accepted our offer and I believe that he will not only be a significant support to the entire AFI in terms of operations and management, but he will also contribute with his unique know-how from foreign operations not only in the area of investments. Thanks to his professional history, he has an excellent understanding of both the needs of private Czech and international companies, as well as the functioning and motivations of state and local governments."
Ondřej Votruba
Executive Director of the AFI