Businesses from the UK are in the top four foreign investors in Flanders in 2022

Flanders has announced record amount of investments from foreign companies resulting in the generation of record number of jobs in Flanders in 2022.

Investment figures released this week by Flanders Investment & Trade show that UK businesses are continuing to make significant investments in Flanders, as UK companies navigate the impact of doing business in Europe following Brexit.

Flanders’ Minister-President Jan Jambon announced on Monday 16th January record investment figures from foreign companies investing in Flanders, with €5.26 billion invested by foreign companies in 2022. This exceeds the previous record of €5.20 billion in pre-COVID 2019. Flanders also recorded an inflow of 278 new investment projects, generating a record number of 6,540 additional jobs in Flanders.

Flanders, the northern region of Belgium, has established itself as an important gateway to the European single market for British businesses since the UK’s departure from the EU. With complex new Customs regulations and Brexit-related bureaucracies that are interpreted differently by each EU member state, numerous British businesses have invested in establishing a strategic base in Flanders to enter the European market.

22 UK investors founded investment projects in Flanders in 2022, accounting for 8 per cent of total foreign investments in Flanders and the fourth-highest location for foreign investors in Flanders. 70 per cent of the UK investments in Flanders in 2022 (16 projects) were Greenfield projects.

Since 2020, over 100 UK businesses have invested in Flanders, generating just under 1,300 jobs in the region.

4 top foreign investments trends in Flanders in 2022:
1. Flanders has attracted foreign direct investments in strategic sectors. Various pharmaceutical and chemical projects contributed to the new record investment amount. This is slightly higher than the previous record of EUR 5.20 billion from 2019, just before the COVID pandemic.
2. Foreign investments linked to climate tech and the energy transition are on the rise in Flanders. In 2022, they accounted for an investment amount of EUR 1.64 billion, 960 additional jobs and 23 projects.
3. Innovation remains Flanders’ international trademark. The share of foreign investment in R&D activities is historically high, accounting for 1 in 5 projects and 1 in 4 extra jobs.

The top three foreign investors in Flanders in 2022 were the United States, the Netherlands and France, followed by the UK in fourth.

Astrid Geeraerts, Head of Investment at Flanders Investment & Trade and based at the Belgian Embassy in London, commented: “Over the past 12 months, British businesses have continued to invest in Flanders, with 22 new investment projects. This continues a trend of recognising Flanders as a key investment location, following a record number of investments from UK-based companies in 2021, when two in three UK investment projects in Flanders were linked to Brexit.”

Jan Jambon, Flanders’ Minister-President, said: “Flanders is known worldwide as a strong investment location for international and innovative companies. One in five foreign investments in Flanders has to do with R&D, creating numerous innovative jobs as well.”
Our region has also become an important gateway to the European market for UK businesses since Brexit took effect and offers a wealth of opportunities for businesses thanks to Flanders’ innovative R&D ecosystem, accessible ports and transport links and our strategic location in Europe’s industrial heartland.