CzechInvest has published the annual report for 2022. Despite the unexpected events and challenges that affected not only Czechia but the entire world, CzechInvest supported various activities and entrepreneurs last year. The agency concentrated on encouraging investments in promising sectors of innovation, research, and development. The largest project in the Agency's history and the largest Czech project to support startups called Technology Incubation was launched. The year culminated in the celebration of 30 years since its establishment.
"It has been an incredibly diverse year for our organisation, and I am pleased to note that not only the Czech business environment but also CzechInvest successfully navigated through numerous significant challenges. The Technology Incubation project recently closed its second call for applications, and several other activities have been launched to support innovative startups and value-added projects. The number of successful events and investment projects shows the irreplaceable role of the agency, which supports entrepreneurs and investors in Czechia," said Petr Očko, Deputy Minister for Digitalization and Innovation at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, who is in charge of the CzechInvest agency.
In 2022, CzechInvest supported 74 startups not only through the concluding Support for Startups Programme (2016-2022) but also through the incubation of ESA BIC Czech Republic and the first edition of the Investment Academy for Startups. At the end of the year, another 37 startups were approved for the first call of Technology Incubation, the largest startup support project in Czechia, which is currently in its second call.
CzechInvest has a total of 13 regional offices and together they managed to organise 171 events in the regions in 2022, which were attended by a total of 7,500 people. The most attended events were events to support the digitisation of SMEs, consultation days or grant opportunity fairs. The CzechInvest Agency, in cooperation with the National Centre for Industry 4.0, held its second annual nationwide conference to promote awareness of Industry 4.0.
In the context of investment development, CzechInvest considers the crucial factors to be the quality and sustainability of investments. The agency provided investors with a range of comprehensive services, including information on the Czech business environment, consultations on financial support, and assistance with locating an investment. In 2022, CzechInvest negotiated 24 investment projects valued at nearly CZK 20 billion. Over 2,600 jobs will be created as a result of these. Last year, 252 foreign investors showed interest in investing in Czechia.
Brownfield sites offer significant potential for further development. Although their preparation is time-consuming and costly, their regeneration has a positive social and economic impact on the area. In 2022, CzechInvest registered 4,377 sites in the National Brownfields Database, which it manages. The agency also traditionally participates in the organisation of the Brownfields Conference, which aims to bring together a wide range of experts involved in the transformation of unused land.
The Annual Report is available here.