Strategic Location
Strategic location at the heart of Europe
Wallonia is in the immediate vicinity of Brussels and Western Europe’s major cities. The area is home to the main offi ces of the largest international institutions and the headquarters of many multinationals.
Brussels with the European Commission, European Parliament, NATO, Eurocontrol, The World Customs Organisation, the SHAPE, 1,500 international organisations, 220 representative offi ces of cities and regions, 160 embassies, and most European professional associations and federations.
Brussels also hosts the largest journalist centres in the world, over 60 foreign banks, 1,700 international corporations, more than 300 international law fi rms or consulting businesses, and 21 international schools.
With Paris, Strasbourg, London, Amsterdam, The Hague, Luxembourg, Cologne, Frankfurt, or even Munich and Geneva within a few hours, Wallonia is directly connected to all decision making centres in Europe.
Wallonia, a region naturally open to the World
The Wallonia region and the French Community are officially represented abroad by ten Wallonia-Brussels delegations based in various different countries.
To strengthen its presence in foreign markets, the Wallonia Region has progressively developed an extensive network of economic and commercial attachés. This network now covers almost one hundred countries and five international organisations.
The role of these attachés is to provide Wallonia's exporters with in-depth knowledge on their respective markets, and to play a liaison role in the development of new markets and the promotion of Wallonia products abroad.
The export division of the Wallonia Export and Investment Agency provides our companies with the information and advice they need to strengthen their market position and consolidate their export reflex.
The Agency's Foreign Investment division has an overall responsibility for the attraction of foreign investment in Wallonia. This includes providing information to potential foreign investors, offering a pro-active follow-up service to investors already established in Wallonia and identifying foreign investors for the acquisition of industrial sites under restructuring process.
Access to markets
Motorway Network
With 842 kilometres of motorway, Wallonia provides optimal connections to the main belgian cities and neighbouring countries.
By road, you can reach a population of 58.8 million inhabitants in just 4 hours and join a large slice of Western European within a mere day’s drive. Home to 370 million consumers, and embracing twenty major cities, this area which is known by some as the "European banana" stretches from England in the North to Spain in the South
Rail Network
The region's rail network also benefits from this strategic location. Four major European network rail lines serve Wallonia, carrying 13 million tonnes of freight each year, and providing work for 3,700 people.
High-speed trains will also play a role in the transportation of commercial goods in the region, as there is every indication that Wallonia will be selected as one of a very small number of European stops for high-speed train freight.
Inland Waterways
In terms of size, the Port Autonome de Liège (PAL) is the third largest inland port in Europe, ahead of Duisburg and just before Paris. In 2007, it handled 21 million tonnes, all modes of transport combined.
Thanks to its strategic location, right at the heart of the Rhine-Escaut-Meuse basin, its direct access to the world's largest port centre (Antwerp-Rotterdam, Gent, Zeebruge) has undoubtedly played an important role in the development of the port.
A number of ongoing and forthcoming investment projects are designed to modernise the port's infrastructure.
Airline Network
Strongly positioned in the freight market niche, Liege airport - which is opened 24/7 - handled 489,870 tonnes of freight in 2007.
This makes it the eighth leading freight airport in Europe.
The infrastructure at this regional airport allows it to accommodate major carriers serving Europe, Asia and Africa. It also has its own Customs service as well as an approved veterinary centre.
