THE CHAMBER SPEAKS
[EDIT/BIZ: Aachen, March 9] German business is extremely competitive internationally and will derive more than average benefit from an improvement in the economy. Measures have been taken to soften the blow of the global downturn. SMEs in particular have gone on short hours and been able to prevent major loss of employment. The government coalition stabilized the market and increased the trust of the consumers. And short hours has been good for the labor market. These two programs at the right time have supported growth in the business cycle. This made it even more disappointing to hear the new government make an observation, in which they contended that without additional savings or a halt in tax reductions, there would be no room in reducing taxes in the public service. Expenditure must be reduced. And there are lots of opportunities for this says Mr Wirtz. For example, a reduction in red tape could be made. He gave some interesting examples of this; where, for example, business travelers have to pay for their hotel bills and breakfasts separately; and then there is the issue of using public transport or using their own vehicles. This was made more complex when the authorities required the public transport tickets to be taxed, and this sent more people back to their private vehicles. One good move was a reduction in the business tax. Mr Wirtz noted that the French president had abolished this tax in France and that this should be possible in Germany too. In some areas the business taxes have grown and at the same time the costs for social services has grown. Only a handful have been able to keep the level down. And this is, in a sense, a homemade problem. Local charges are a problem. Of course the towns and cities in the area have their own responsibilities in this area. The Chamber, in its interest, has reduced its charges. And it is close to business and able to help when the situation requires it. The chamber organization has worked with a credit mediator in Berlin to improve the provision of credit, and in critical cases it has been able to do so. The situation, that led to poor results for 2009, must finance growth for the future. But the banks seem to have improved their position and it is their job to provide credit that they have to earn their living on. Business in this region and the whole of Germany, particularly SMEs are competitive and solid and they deserve support in the region. But there is a new dynamic in the world market and China and Southeast Asia showed particular signs of growth. In the US the economy the economy is growing too. The Chamber is going to make a trip to China with its sister chamber from Limburg in the autumn, to its partner city Ning Bo, where Aachen has a base. And it will not be just a question of exports. Efforts will be made to interest the Chinese in selecting Aachen as a place for them to set up their businesses, so that when China get stronger abroad, Aachen will play its role in this. The World Trade Center (Heerlen-Aachen) on the Dutch side of the border is making a contribution to the cross-border business park at Avantis. More than 300 jobs have been created there, and additional construction is expected. As far as the Aachen region is concerned, the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion is of particular importance, and that’s why strong institutional structures are needed for the Euroregion. The structural reform that has been undertaken thus far has been half-hearted and other regions do it better. On the other hand, the chambers of commerce in Meuse-Rhine have worked together successfully for a long time and relations between Aachen, Liège, and Maastricht are stronger than ever. Unfortunately, as far at the EU-funded programs are concerned, they do not seem to have done so well on the business side, and this is a lost opportunity. Education is an essential area of concern and it’s good to note that 80% of German students have completed university or training, and this puts them ahead in Europe. Climate and energy is something that it is with us always now, and on the regional front we need to ask what Aachen’s role can be as a technological center of competence in the North-Rhine Westphalian energy world. The solar thermal power plant in Jülich and their project for storing current and the idea of electric cars are examples of the technical developments coming from this region as is the lignite mining which is always something to fall back on. Nevertheless, despite political considerations, we should be aware that nuclear energy is a bridging technology which cannot be disregarded and that is something that should not be forgotten. Regional energy and climate Internet platform We are collecting information and knowledge of competence. The issue is regional added value. The logistical infrastructure is and remains a key issue for the location. The transport of freight in the Rhineland will grow by two-thirds through 2025 and the highways which will bear the burden of this with the goods coming in from the ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam, which means that truck transport and rail cargo is important. The list of things to be done is very long; there are 80 highway-building projects and 30 rail projects. One that is particularly conspicuous is the building of the Aachen highway junction. It has started and this hub has got to be completed by 2015. It’s like open-heart surgery. In the end, there will be 17 highway lanes next to one another, and this is of course going to cause problems. The quality of the air is important In order to improve the air, you restrict traffic. It is difficult to be certain how much influence this has when one takes the weather and topography into account. Stopping traffic is also going to present major obstacles for Belgian and Dutch clients and for the Aachen retail trade. Experts estimate a drop of EUR 85m if a prohibition on traffic were to be instituted. The change in the economy from one with a concentration on mining to new economic areas of focus is an ongoing process. We know that new business means new jobs. A wide range of agencies and the chambers have been working for 10 years to find better paths to economic independence. There are, however, differences from one area to another. There is clearly more business development in the Aachen City Region than in the districts of Düren, Euskirchen and Heinsberg. To achieve balanced regional development, we need more business in the countryside. This would also lead to a reduction in traffic flows. The target is to double the number of new businesses and to ensure that our schools and universities are more independent and play their role. We must also make technology start-ups more attractive. There need to be uncomplicated programs to help in the difficult initial period and cushion the financial risk. Fortunately, we do not have to invent this program from scratch because it has already been around for 25 years and has been very successful in establishing technology-based companies in the region. We must promote exiting companies and create new jobs, and we have the AC² growth initiative and a pilot project to help with this. In this business development area we also have the luck to have our great university, the RWTH Aachen, the The FH Aachen - University of Applied Sciences - and the Jülich Research Center to help us; and, with the new campus on its way, there will be an even firmer basis to work from. Together with under Chambers in the Rhineland, in Bonn, Düsseldorf, Cologne and Krefeld, Aachen is bringing in the international focus and technology. We have had problems; we have seen Philips Research close down. Now, AGIT, the development company, is going to play an important role in bringing in new business. The new campus is certainly a trump card. However, to show that we don’t only think of business, the Hans van Aachen exhibition will soon be opening and reveal that Aachen's influence has flowed in many directions. SW
On March 9, the Aachen Chamber of Commerce and Industry held it’s Annual General Meeting, and the president of the Chamber, Mr Bert Wirtz, gave his annual address reviewing the state of the economy of the region. After mentioning the dignitaries present, including the new mayor of Aachen, Mr Philipp, and representatives of Ecuador among other distinguished visitors, the president went on to say that things were looking a little better and economic growth of more than 2% could be expected because global exports were beginning to pick up and the economic would continue into the following year. [We summarize the address below.]
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