Agenda for Trade and Services Competitiveness approved with €400 million

The government approved a chunk of funds worth €400 million to help Portuguese companies modernise across five key areas: digitalisation, sustainability, retraining and upskilling, sustainability, and trade and services marketing, yesterday at a meeting of the Council of Ministers.

The agenda, which was foreseen in the Medium Term Agreement on the Improvement for Salaries and Competitiveness signed by social partners, will have a capital endowment of €400 million.
According to a communiqué from the Council of Ministers the goals are to “transform trade and services, promoting the creation of value in these sectors, and contribute substantially to the growth of the Portuguese economy and Portugal’s GDP”: promoting innovation, digitalisation, and sustainability of trade and services; modernising and upgrading local businesses, sector knowledge, and in promoting trade and services”, as also outlined by the Ministry of the Economy.
On the ‘Trade Programme with History’ aspect, the State Budget for 2024 foresees the development of new measures aimed at promoting historical establishments and Portugal’s national heritage inventory, aiming to give visibility to commercial establishments that have a historical component, and encourage municipal councils to make the most of the best of their heritage within their municipalities, contributing towards urban revitalisation, preserving the collective history of these establishments that are unique and indicative of local and national culture and history.