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In such a 'delicate' economic situation, Teresa Pisano bets for strengthening the role of the Vigo Free Trade Zone as a revitalizing agent for the economic activity of the city. In this context, Ms. Pisano believes that the celebration of World Fishing Exhibition is an 'extraordinary pretext' for the 'fisheries industry to demonstrate its know-how’'.
Could you asses the current economic context?
We are living fragile economic times. Nevertheless, in spite of all the things that are taking place — mainly the increase of the unemployment rate, which is one of the most harmful issues— we must turn the crisis into an opportunity. We have to think that nothing goes on forever: obviously, the crisis will end and the important thing is to emerge strengthened from it. For this reason, measures must be taken and, of course, the Free Trade Zone is conscious of the situation and is carrying out its tasks and duties.
Which are your main duties?
First of all, an important restriction of the current expenditure. Public Administrations must set a good example in this context; therefore, as a public body, the Free Trade Zone Consortium is immersed in an austerity plan that will permit the restriction of the current expenditure and, later, decisively boost our investment activity and offer the conditions needed for businessmen to carry out their activities.
With regard to the role of the Free Trade Zone, the day you took over you stated that the Consortium must work as a ‘development agency’.
I think that the main role of the Consortium consists on encouraging the economic and industrial activity. According to our point of view, we have to help entrepreneurs by offering them the means needed in order to facilitate this activity from the beginning of their new projects. Currently, we have a Centre for Business Initiatives (CIE) at A Granxa, where 500 projects have been studied and analyzed, as well as 80 companies —90% of them are now operating. The role of the Consortium is extremely important and we want to create a new CIE at the business park of Porto do Molle, where we would like to develop some kind of ‘second round’ for entrepreneurs to be decisively consolidated and, even, help them with their international promotion. We consider that three years in a centre for business initiatives may not be enough to consolidate the launch of the business activity developed by the entrepreneur, and that is why the new CIE will propose new and longer programs.
The promotion and internationalization of the companies is one of the aspects in which you have been working in the last years.
Yes, we can contribute a lot to internationalization and, therefore, we have created this second round of the CIE. But our support to the industrial economic activity does not finish there. For consolidated companies, which have a growth potential with innovative products and services and really want to expand and increase, we have Vigo Activo, a very powerful tool offered by the Consortium; it participates in the capital of the companies — between 15% and 40% and temporarily— and provides the companies with the boost needed for their growth. Currently, we have 16 participated companies which, in spite of the fragile economic times, are doing well. We decisively bet for Vigo Activo and we are planning an increase in capital. It is precisely now, when companies with important projects on their agendas have difficulties to obtain funding, that we have to support them, so these projects are not forgotten in bottom drawers and we can contribute with something to emerge from this crisis.
Apart from these initiatives, which other projects are being developed by the Free Trade Zone?
The idea of the Consortium is to create a circle to help the entrepreneur in all the stages of the business activity; we have initiatives such as CIE and Vigo Activo, but we are also specialists in industrial land: we are managing 3.5 million square metres of industrial land and we are creating 3.8 million square metres more. We are devoting great care to the creation of this land. Each time that we start a project we look for the comprehensive transformation of the land to turn it into the appropriate habitat for the business activity. Porto do Molle is a good example, as it is not a normal industrial estate. We are planning a real City of Work, where companies will live together with schools, sports facilities, kindergartens… The facilities will be sustainably built, with energy efficiency and perfectly integrated in the territorial field where they are developed, —in this case in a highly tourist area nearby the sea. Furthermore, and precisely because we are conscious of the current situation and of the role that we have to play, the Free Trade Zone is going to build industrial premises at Porto do Molle, in order to facilitate the access to industries and companies. These will be modular buildings adapted to the needs of each company at every moment and will be available for renting, purchasing or renting with option to buy. The investment that will be made is very important and I think that the business park will be a good example both due to its design and the facilities offered for the entrepreneurs.
And what about the future park Matamá-Valladares? It has aroused the interest of the freezing industry.
The works in Porto do Molle are almost finished and we have decisively started with the park Matamá- Valladares-San Andrés de Comesaña. This park is essential for the city thanks to the interest of its location, communications… We are extremely conscious of what this means, as it is the last park that can be built in the city and its construction designs a strategic axis for the industry and the economic activity in Vigo, given that it is linked by the industrial belt of the Free Trade Zone, Balaídos and the Technology Park. An essential axis that we are clearly boosting, but with difficulties: we are talking about 1,200 plots with different singularities and peculiarities. Now, we are working with the cartography and planning and we expect to finish this task as soon as possible and then start designing the park. With regard to the freezing industry, the urban development section in the General Plan gives certain priority to all the companies currently located at Beiramar. But, apart from the creation of industrial land, the business initiatives centres and Vigo Activo, we also want to give a new boost to Ardán. In this sense, we are going to create a portal of competitiveness indicators, a portal of sectorial reference where each company will be able to establish its position in the industry and know the keys to improve its competitiveness. Undoubtedly, we are not living a good situation, but we have to take advantage from the crisis: if we know how to make good use of the talent of the people from Vigo, adequately use and manage the knowledge and incorporate the competitiveness factors needed for the work of the companies and industries, Vigo will stay afloat, without any doubt, and will continue to be the driving force for the growth of the economic activity in Galicia and a referent in the Euroregion Galicia-North of Portugal.
In this context of crisis, the fisheries activity is demonstrating that it is less influenced by the cycle changes. In this sense, how do you asses the boost that the WFE-Vigo 2009 will give to this activity?
Fishing is an extremely important activity for the city and the celebration of the WFE in Vigo proves it. I believe that WFE represents an unquestionably important event for Vigo, not just because it will provide a breath of fresh air in a moment in which we need to cheer up, but also because it involves the recognition of the city, of the importance of the role played by Vigo in the fisheries activity. Figures speak for themselves: the city is national leader and one of the most important fishing cities in the world. It will also give a special opportunity for the fisheries industry to exhibit its know-how, its products and innovations that, without any doubt, will entail important steps forward towards the improvement of the economic activity, so important for Galicia. Furthermore, the Fifth Fisheries Ministers Conference and the First World Summit on Fisheries Sustainability will permit to debate on extremely important issues, as it is essential to talk about economic sustainability of the fisheries industry, biological sustainability of the species and the sustainability of the developed community. All in all, we are talking about an efficient management of resources in order to be more competitive: to be strong, the economic activity needs to grow with regard to competitiveness, and that is the main topic with which we are dealing
