Digital skills development continues in the Baltics

After the success of last year’s Virtual Internships in the Baltics project, the Latvian Information and Communications Technology Association (LIKTA), with the support of Microsoft, will continue its Digital Skills Development program in 2023 by providing AI course for beginners in local languages and English, AI course for specialists and Power BI and Python programming courses.

The Minister of Health outlines her priorities

On March 21, AmCham representatives met with Liga Mengelsone, Minister of Health to get familiarized with the Minister’s priorities and to introduce her to the AmCham Healthcare work group's activities including sustainable healthcare financing, the efficiency of the healthcare system and digital health. Human capital is one of the top priorities for AmCham, including proactively supporting healthcare policy improvements as the basis for further economic growth.

Transatlantic Report shows strong EU-US partnership

A new Transatlantic Report 2023 from AmCham EU and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce highlights that the key drivers of the transatlantic economy – investment, trade and company income – despite the war in Ukraine, supply chain disruptions, dramatic energy shifts, high inflation and tightening financial conditions posted strong results again in 2022. To view key findings!

On March 21, AmCham together with Cognizant hosted a session devoted to the topic of sustainability and ESG, and the challenges, risks and opportunities for businesses when integrating ESG strategies into their operations. Invited experts agreed that the directive for sustainability reporting and other upcoming regulations will affect companies of all sizes and will require the collection of data, the assessment of existing business processes, value chains and the introduction of new processes. Although the implementation of ESG is a complex task, it can ultimately add real value and increase operating profits for businesses.

Improving people’s lives with innovative medical technologies

We are delighted to continue highlighting our members and sponsors of our 30th Anniversary, and are pleased to share a video featuring Medtronic, represented by Edgars Labsvirs, Health Policy and Market Access Manager Baltics. In his video, Edgars stresses: "We believe innovative medical technologies can contribute to solving the fundamental challenges of our health systems - namely an aging population and ever-increasing healthcare costs. It is meaningful innovations that have the potential to make the healthcare system more efficient and to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend lives of more people at the same or lower cost."

COBALT, Ellex and Sorainen among top-tier legal firms in the Baltics

COBALT, Ellex and Sorainen were recognized as top-tier legal firms by the newly published Chambers Europe Guide 2023. This year COBALT received the highest ranking – Band 1 – in 16 practice areas, Ellex in 14 practice areas and Sorainen earned the highest ranking in 16 areas across the Baltic states.

Nasdaq welcomes PwC as a Certified Adviser on First North

On March 15, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) was granted the status of pan-Baltic Certified Adviser on the Nasdaq First North market designed for ambitious small and medium-sized companies in the Baltics. Being a Certified Adviser permits PwC to guide growth companies in Baltics through the Firth North application process and ensure they meet all the market’s requirements on a continuous basis.

On March 14, members of the Healthcare work group gathered to discuss the latest developments with regard to ongoing healthcare issues: healthcare financing and efficiency, digital health, and the legal framework of secondary health data. Members also touched upon recent and upcoming meetings with government representatives.

Report on philanthropy and CSR in CEE is out

Social Impact Alliance for Central & Eastern Europe has launched a report "Philanthropy and Corporate Social Responsibility in Central & Eastern Europe (CEE)". The report for Latvia is part of a larger study conducted in 11 countries, indicating that with proper motivation, CEE citizens would be willing to donate almost twice as much as now. The report also provides valuable takeaways and recommendations in the realms of tax reform, cultivating social preconditions for donors, as well as implementing various legal and educational changes to increase donations.

AmCham meets with the Minister of Economy

On March 10, the Board and work group representatives of AmCham had a productive meeting with Ilze Indriksone, Minister of Economy and discussed the economic transformation, high-value investment attraction and targeted development of human capital. The investment attraction strategy, particularly providing a "green corridor" for knowledge-intensive sector priority projects as well as steps for reducing bureaucratic obstacles in the business environment were also discussed.