President of Latvia Egils Levits met with the leaders and representatives of the Council of the Employers’ Confederation of Latvia (LDDK) in the Riga Castle today.
During the meeting, Mr Levits heard the LDDK’s vision of the economic development of Latvia, and they emphasised the role of the National Tripartite Cooperation Council in promoting dialogue among the government, employers, and employees.
LDDK President Vitālijs Gavrilovs and LDDK Secretary-General Līga Meņģelsone presented the LDDK strategy and drew attention to the opportunities for increasing Latvia’s position in the global competitiveness index and reduction of bureaucracy by regulating the development of various sectors.
Both parties agreed on the need for a long-term vision of the country’s economic development by working on those sectors flexibly that required changes or improvements accordingly. Mr Levits stressed that, from the point of view of public policy, in the event of restructuring any sector there should be education and support mechanisms in the country that would help people enter the labour market in another sector easily.
They also outlined in the conversation that an interdisciplinary approach to issues was needed increasingly in a modern and competitive country. According to President of Latvijas Mobilais telefons Ltd. Juris Binde, innovation, digital transformation and digital education are important prerequisites for Latvia to strengthen its leading position in the field of digital opportunities in Northern Europe. Special attention should be paid to the education of senior IT professionals such as system analysts and system architects. The cooperation between Riga Business School and Boston University in developing a training course for such specialists was commended.
Chairperson of the Council of JSC “Latvijas Finieris” Uldis Biķis emphasised the importance of circular economy and bioeconomy in modern thinking about the use of our land and development of the country.
Business Development Manager of “Lietišķās informācijas dienests” Ltd Aiva Vīksna stressed the role of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs in the development of the country.
The meeting also briefly discussed the current issues of social dialogue in Europe and the issues of overall European competitiveness, and relations between EU countries and their cooperation partners.
Member of the Board of the Financial Sector Association Janis Brazovskis outlined that all partners should work together to restore Latvia’s reputation in the financial sector and combating financial crime should be merciless.
The President of Latvia confirmed that he planned to invite businesses to accompany the President of Latvia on state visits to other countries during his presidency in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.