June 21, 2024 – Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro eagerly welcomed a bold, updated vision of Empowered Startups’ commitment to bring foreign direct investment to Portugal when he visited the Canadian multinational’s office in Évora. Empowered Startups’ President Chris Lennon confidently conveyed the expanded projection for the HQA Visa Program to Montenegro as the two shook hands during their conversation amidst a throng of national media, who rapidly photographed the meeting and recorded it on video.
“We made a commitment to the former government, former Minister Abrunhosa, a year ago to bring 250 projects,” explained Lennon to an interested Montenegro, who gladly received a symbolic gift from his new acquaintance. Lennon then continued, “After hearing your comments and your vision, I think we should probably increase that number. We think we can bring over 50 million Euros of foreign direct investment over the next few years.”
“Ok, we are available [to] work with you,” responded a smiling Montenegro as he firmly shook Lennon’s hand.
“That would be excellent. Thank you,” replied Lennon to the recently elected Prime Minister.
Lennon’s pledge of €50 million represents a significant increase in the direct foreign investment to Portugal that Empowered Startups is forecasting through its HQA Visa Program. In February 2022, Lennon presented Minster Ana Abrunhosa with a Letter of Commitment that promised 250 projects and €10 million of direct investment over a 36-month span.
Inauguration of PACT 3.0
Montenegro headlined the inauguration of the 3.0 Complex of Parque do Alentejo de Ciência e Tecnologia (PACT) where Empowered Startups’ office is located in Évora. The Prime Minister used the opportunity to announce the State will donate a plot of land for the University of Évora to build its new health centre on and was emphatic in describing the importance of projects that create the unique combination “that allows us to achieve levels of social and territorial cohesion that create a dynamic that avoids depopulation and socio-economic withering of regions”.
“We can only face the phenomenon of human relocation to the more developed regions if we have an economy, if we are competitive, and to be competitive, if we do better than others, and to do better, if we invest in knowledge, science and innovation, and we do all this in relation to the forces of the community,” asserted Montenegro.
HQA Visa Program Alignment
Though his comments were not specific to a single entity, the Prime Minister’s words aptly described several benefits of Empowered Startups’ HQA Visa Program. By bringing direct investment to innovative research projects at universities and polytechnics in regions outside major urban centres, Empowered stimulates economic activity and creates significant opportunities for students in smaller communities. Such talent would otherwise need to relocate to large cities or even different countries in order to find such prospects. As a result, the research opportunities Empowered Startups seeds at higher education institutions not only strengthen social and territorial cohesion, they contribute to the retention and recruitment of young talent, another stated objective of the Government of Portugal.
As the only government-endorsed delivery partner of the HQA Visa Program, Empowered Startups has brought over €5 millon of direct investment to Portugal and has substantially increased the number of accomplished transnational entrepreneurs investing in the country as awareness of its program grows. Each of these investors initiates an innovative R&D project with a university or polytechnic in Empowered’s established network of higher education institutions, resulting in a significant number of research opportunities for students.
More information on the HQA Visa Program can be found on Empowered Startups’ website
