The EU Gateway Programme was an initiative funded by the European Union (EU), created and managed by the Service for Foreign Policy Instruments under the Partnership Instrument.[1] The Programme was launched in 1990 to deepen economic interaction and cooperation between Europe and Japan.[2] After the first successful editions, the Programme expanded into the Republic of Korea, South East Asia and China. For 30 years, until 2020, it acted as a bridgehead to support European companies developing and consolidating their businesses in Asia.[3]
The European Commission has always encouraged European enterprises' efforts to penetrate the Japanese market through business support programmes.
In 1990, the pilot EU Gateway Programme was created, pursuing the European and Japanese commitment to ensure equitable access to their markets. In July 1991, the European Community member states and Japan, agreed to "pursuing their resolve for equitable access to their respective markets and removing obstacles whether structural or other, impeding the expansion of trade and investment, on the basis of comparable opportunities" through the Joint Declaration that was signed.[4] As a result, combined efforts started to be made for rejecting protectionism, removing market barriers, implementing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and OECD principles concerning trade and investment. In addition, the basis for an intensive interaction in areas such as industrial co-operation, advanced technology, energy, employment, social affairs and competition rules were set. In the light of this diplomatic development, the EU Gateway Programme gained support and built a solid reputation both on the European and Japanese markets.
The democratic and economic drive of the Korean society started in 1992 after the election of Kim Young-sam, the first South Korean President with a civilian background. In 1995, the European Union launched the negotiations for a Framework Agreement (FA) on Trade and Cooperation with the Republic of Korea.[5] In April 2001, the Framework Agreement entered into force committing both parties to foster bilateral trade and investment.
Between 1990 and 2001, 36 EU-funded business missions were organised by EU Gateway with nearly 1,400 European SMEs participants. From 2002 to 2007, the Programme organised 30 new EU-funded business missions with close to 1,000 participating companies.
In 2007, the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations between EU and the Republic of Korea started, entering into force in July 2011.[6]
The EU Gateway Programme to the Republic of Korea was launched in 2008 during the FTA consultations aiming to accompany the implementation of the agreement along the way, marking a new era in EU Gateway history. In 2014, the EU Gateway Programme reached 24 years of history in Japan and 6 years of presence in the Republic of Korea.
All in all, from 2008 to 2014 more than 1,500 companies participated in 31 EU-funded business missions to Japan and 15 EU-funded business missions to the Republic of Korea respectively.[7]
Between 2014 – 2015, three business missions to Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam were organised, under the new pilot EU Business Avenues in South East Asia. 120 European companies participated to the first 3 EU-funded business missions to South East Asia.
From 2016 to 2020 the initiative was rebranded EU Gateway | Business Avenues[8] following the successful implementation of the pilot in South East Asia. More than 2,200 from all EU member states participated to 53 EU-funded business missions to the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan, and China, encouraging the establishment of long-lasting business collaborations with local companies. This last edition of the EU Gateway Programme focused on nine sectors: Green Energy Technologies, Environment & Water Technologies, Clean Technologies, Healthcare & Medical Technologies, Information & Communication Technologies, Construction & Building Technologies, Railway Technologies & Services, Organic Food & Beverage, and Contemporary European Design.
EU Gateway was instrumental to foster EU bilateral trade relations. The Programme closely followed and leveraged trade connections between the EU and the Asian target markets. With the EU-Republic of Korea Trade Agreement in place since 2011, the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) in 2019 further strengthening the bond between the two long-standing economic partners, and the newly adopted Free Trade Agreements — EU-Singapore FTA in 2019, and EU-Vietnam FTA in 2020, EU Gateway | Business Avenues lifted thousands European companies to new heights. Today, its legacy provides a solid base geared towards tighter international business cooperation and the “next” normal: a more sustainable future founded on digital and global health.
Business Avenues is an initiative funded by the European Union helping European companies to establish long-lasting business collaborations in Asia. Selected European companies get the opportunity to participate in a one-week business mission in any of the three target markets, Korea, South East Asia and China, and soon Japan. The programme is focused on specific sectors, with an emphasis on green and clean technology and services.
Achievements and results
In 2020, the EU Gateway Programme reached 30 years of history. In this timespan, over 6,200 European companies participated in 168 EU-funded business missions successfully entering the Asian markets.
The results tallied between 2016 and 2019, over 5,000 new jobs were created within one year from the EU-funded mission and 57% of the participating companies declared they had either concluded new sales or signed business contracts or were expecting to do so shortly after they participated in a mission.
Between 2016 and 2020, EU Gateway | Business Avenues received approximately 9,600 expressions of interest from European companies, and over 2,200 were chosen to participate to one or more EU-funded business missions to Asia. In this five-year run, the Programme pre-arranged 24,000 B2B meetings, and over 38,000 Asian buyers visited the EU pavilions. 92% of the participating companies were satisfied with the Programme, and 98% would apply again.[8]
Related Research Articles
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of 27 member states that are located primarily in Europe. The Union has a total area of 4,233,255 km2 (1,634,469 sq mi) and an estimated total population of over 449million. The EU has often been described as a sui generis political entity combining the characteristics of both a federation and a confederation.
The European Union has a number of relationships with foreign states. According to the European Union's official site, and a statement by Commissioner Günter Verheugen, the aim is to have a ring of countries, sharing EU's democratic ideals and joining them in further integration without necessarily becoming full member states.
A European Union Association Agreement or simply Association Agreement (AA) is a treaty between the European Union (EU), its Member States and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. Areas frequently covered by such agreements include the development of political, trade, social, cultural and security links.
The economy of the European Union is the joint economy of the member states of the European Union (EU). It is the second largest economy in the world in nominal terms, after the United States, and the third largest at purchasing power parity (PPP), after China and the US. The European Union's GDP is estimated to be $19.35 trillion (nominal) in 2024 or $26.64 trillion (PPP), representing around one-sixth of the global economy. Germany has the biggest national GDP of all EU countries, followed by France and Italy. In 2022, the social welfare expenditure of the European Union (EU) as a whole was 19.5% of its GDP.
Relations between the European Union (EU) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) or Sino–European relations are bilateral relations that were established in 1975 between the PRC and the European Community. The EU is the PRC's largest trading partner, and the PRC is the EU's largest trade partner.
Although there has been a large degree of integration between European Union member states, foreign relations is still a largely intergovernmental matter, with the 27 states controlling their own relations to a large degree. However, with the Union holding more weight as a single entity, there are at times attempts to speak with one voice, notably on trade and energy matters. The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy personifies this role.
The ASEAN–European Union relations are the bilateral foreign relations between the two organisations; the European Union (EU), and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). EU and ASEAN have been interacting with each other on the economic, trade, and political levels for more than four decades. The partnership between the EU and ASEAN dates back to 1972, when the EU established ties with ASEAN. The EU became an ASEAN Dialogue Partner in 1977.
The European Union–South Korea Free Trade Agreement is a free trade agreement between the European Union (EU) and South Korea. The agreement was signed on 15 October 2009. The agreement was provisionally applied from 1 July 2011, and entered into force from 13 December 2015, after having been ratified by all signatories.
European Union–Kazakhstan relations are the international relations between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the common foreign policy and trade relations of the European Union.
European Union–Pakistan relations are the international relations between the common foreign policy and trade relations of the European Union and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. There has been no EU State Leader's visit for over twenty years.
The European Union has concluded free trade agreements (FTAs) and other agreements with a trade component with many countries worldwide and is negotiating with many others. The European Union negotiates free trade deals on behalf of all of its member states, as the member states have granted the EU has an "exclusive competence" to conclude trade agreements. Even so, member states' governments control every step of the process :
The Service for Foreign Policy Instruments (FPI) is a department (Directorate-General) of the European Commission set up in response to the establishment of the European External Action Service (EEAS). The EEAS merged the Commission's Directorate-General for External Relations (and various other departments) with its counterparts in the Council of Ministers. The responsible Commissioner for the service is the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell Fontelles in his role as Commission Vice-President. The current Head of Service is Peter M. Wagner.
Relations between the European Union (EU) and Japan date back to 1959. They have a strong trade relationship, particularly in investment flows.
The European Union (EU) and South Korea are important trade partners: As of April 2023, Korea is the EU's third-largest importer. Excluding European countries, Korea has secured the third place on the list, following China and the United States. And the EU is Korea's third largest export destination. The two have signed a free trade agreement which came into effect at end of 2011. Furthermore, South Korea is the only country in the world with the three agreements covering economics, politics and security in effect as of 2020.
Established in 1987, the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation is a unique venture between the European Commission and the Japanese Government (METI).
Brexit and arrangements for science and technology refers to arrangements affecting scientific research, experimental development and innovation that are within the scope of the negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union on the terms of Britain's withdrawal from the European Union (EU).
The European Union's scientific collaboration beyond the bloc describes the European Union's frameworks for bilateral cooperation and specific projects in science and technology, with countries and regional blocs situated beyond the European Union.
Horizon Europe is a seven-year European Union scientific research initiative, successor of the Horizon 2020 programme and the earlier Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development. The European Commission drafted and approved a plan for Horizon Europe to raise EU science spending levels by 50% over the years 2021–2027.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
