Flanders Investment and Trade is devoted to the development of trade relations and investment opportunities between Flanders and the world. The capital of Flanders, Brussels, is also the capital of Belgium and Europe, the world’s largest economic market. Our agency assists companies from Flanders in their internalization efforts and assists international companies to set up a footprint at the heart of the European market.

In life sciences and biotechnology, Flanders is home to the world leaders of the pharmaceutical industry, including Johnson and Johnson, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Alcon, Novartis, a.o. The region is famous for its discoveries of medicines and is the number 2 in Europe in clinical trial intensity. In biotechnology and biomedical technologies, it hosts the world renowned Institute of Biotechnology VIB, the world’s largest nanotech research center IMEC, the NanoBio Convergence Laboratory, that, together with the centers of excellences at the Flemish universities including one of the largest university hospitals in Europe, form a unique concentration of know-how creation, human capital and technology transfer.