Ljubljana, 20 December (STA) - The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) has launched a Slovenian-French Business Council in a bid to help Slovenian companies enter the French market and strengthen bilateral cooperation. Its chair Franjo Bobinac says there are many companies in Slovenia which have not yet fully tapped into the potential of the French market.
The council is a platform to exchange initiatives, know-how and specific projects, GZS director general Vesna Nahtigal said as the council was presented on Friday.
The goal is to boost business and development cooperation while facilitating Slovenian companies' breakthrough in the prestigious French market, she said.
Bobinac is convinced that "Slovenia has a large number of medium-sized, small and even large companies that have not yet fully used the potential the French market has to offer".
The council will thus organise several business conferences every year to facilitate networking and contacts among French and Slovenian companies.
"We'll also organise events to present France as a potential market for their products, services and capital," he told the press after the presentation.
The council has 15 to 20 members, but the goal is to have at least 50 next year, he said.
France is the second largest economy in the eurozone while it was Slovenia's 8th largest trade partner in 2023.
Slovenia's exports of goods to France amounted to EUR 1.82 billion last year, while imports from there accounted for EUR 1.29 billion.
Bobinac said the biggest obstacle to entering the French market is a poor knowledge of the country and its language.
Economy Minister Matjaž Han outlined Slovenian-French cooperation in his address, pointing to a recent memorandum of understanding to produce an electric Twingo in Slovenia.
He also sees potential for cooperation in gastronomy, including wine-making, and green technologies.
"I believe the Slovenian-French Business Council will not only be a platform for economic cooperation but also a bridge between our two countries in other areas."
French Ambassador to Slovenia Florence Levy welcomed the new council, too, stressing the good relations between the countries, which will now be further strengthened.
She sees potential for cooperation in the fields of AI, hydrogen, renewables and the defence industry, among others.
Slovenia and France established a strategic partnership in 2011 by signing a special declaration. Last January, foreign ministers Tanja Fajon and Catherine Colonna signed the fourth action plan for the period 2024-2027, the GZS said.
