#BEmissionBRA (22/11-01/12) – DAY 3 - To kick-start the third day of the Belgian Economic Mission in Brazil, HRH Princess Astrid attended a Seminar on sustainable infrastructure and construction at the FIESP (Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo); she was welcomed by Mr Dan Ioschpe, Vice President of FIESP and Ms. Isabelle GRIPPA, CEO of hub.brussels.
Afterwards, the delegation went to the Residence of the Belgian Consulate in São Paulo to attend an event on sustainable trade in food and drinks. Existing relationships in logistics and the trade of food products were celebrated and future partnerships were explored through testimonials and the exchange of best practices focusing on Belgian pears and Brazilian coffee. During her visit, HRH Princess Astrid could taste different delicacies made with the famous Belgian Conference pears and some Brazilian coffee from the Minas Gerais region.
During this morning, HRH Princess Astrid was invited to Embraer offices in São Paulo. Francisco Gomes Neto, CEO of EMBRAER and Yves Delatte, CEO of SONACA welcomed the delegation and discussed the future of the aerospace industry. Embraer, the world's third-largest aviation company, is based in Brazil and operates in both civil and military aviation. Embraer has had a successful 30-year partnership with Belgian company Sonaca. The visit emphasised the importance of strengthening this collaboration, especially as sustainability and the energy transition become more significant. At 12:00, an hybrid high-level official meeting with HE Geraldo Alckmin, Vice President of Brazil, took place at the hotel. After this busy morning, HRH Princess Astrid attended a leadership lunch on Brazil & Belgium: partners in building a low carbon hydrogen economy.
In the afternoon, another important official meeting with HE Tarcísio de Freitas, Governor of the State of São Paulo, was held at the Palacio dos Bandeirantes where 3 very important agreements with Sao Paulo State were signed.
The 1st official Signing Ceremony took place in Sao Paulo, where no less than 26 agreements were signed between Belgian and Brazilian companies and academic institutions. This 3rd day ended with the Belgian Official Reception and gathered approximately 700 guests at the beautifully decorated Casa Charlô.
