Attracting investors and new companies to Santa Catarina are the objectives of the InvestSC programme, which this month completes a year with a balance of more than R$2 billion in investments and the generation of more than 2 thousand direct jobs. Established by the Government of Santa Catarina, through Decree 1.141 of 9 February 2021, the programme provided 40 services under the command of the State Secretariat for Sustainable Economic Development (SDE).

“A year ago we created this programme with exactly this intention: to attract capital and create even more opportunities for the people of Santa Catarina. InvestSC makes Santa Catarina grow even more than it has been growing and generates more development for everyone,” highlights Governor Carlos Moises.

“We took on this challenge last year with great optimism, which has contributed significantly to the growth of the state, with the attraction of new businesses, such as the Nestlé Purina factory that brought a billionaire investment to the state. Santa Catarina has presented incredible numbers in the economy and we have the opportunity to advance even further, in 2022 through the InvestSC programme. It is a fundamental part in this process of economic advancement”, says the Secretary of Sustainable Economic Development, Luciano Buligon.

The programme has an inter-institutional core, involving the Secretariarts of the Treasury, Administration, Infrastructure and Mobility, the Executive Secretariats of Environment, International Affairs, as well as SCPAR and the Federation of Industries of Santa Catarina (FIESC).

How does it work?

The Investment Attraction and New Business Incentives Programme for the State of Santa Catarina (InvestSC) is responsible for proposing policies for regional economic development, with actions that attract and facilitate domestic and foreign investors. The programme also informs about the possibilities offered by the State, in addition to proposing guidelines to attract investments and incentives for new businesses in Santa Catarina.

Throughout 2021, regular meetings were held through the InvestSC Forum, which brings together members of the agencies and entrepreneurs representing the largest companies in the state. The objective is to discuss the demands, priorities and opportunities for the growth of the state, such as the qualification of the workforce, investments in infrastructure, priorities in economic recovery and other issues for the development of Santa Catarina.

SAI launches Investor’s Guide to help foreign investors

Shortly after establishing the programme, the Executive Secretariat for International Affairs (SAI) launched the Investor’s Guide to serve as a resource for national and international investors seeking relevant information about Santa Catarina, integrating one of the actions of the Investment Attraction and New Business Incentives Programme for the State, InvestSC. The guide was prepared through agreements between FIESC/SDE, SCPar and SEF (with support and updates from SAI), and contains territorial, economic and competitiveness data for each sector in Santa Catarina. It also describes information on InvestSC and funding programmes.

“The SAI adopted this idea mainly to show the international public that Santa Catarina is very well prepared, being considered the best state in Brazil to invest, as recently rated by the Bank of Brazil in the Municipal Competitiveness Ranking of the Public Leadership Centre,” said the Secretary of International Affairs, Fernando Raupp.

According to him, with the support of the Investor’s Guide, companies are directed to the InvestSC programme, which is the gateway to the state government, offering the necessary help for them to be guided in the right way, with fewer difficulties and bureaucracy.

Nestlé Purina and the InvestSC

At the end of 2021, through the Programme, one of the main investment announcements was made in Santa Catarina, the construction of a Nestlé Purina unit. The state support for the installation of the industrial unit was carried out in the context of InvestSC. According to company executives, the choice of Santa Catarina was due to competitive advantages such as proximity to suppliers, the strength of the port and the support received from the State Government.

Text: journalist Pablo Mingoti/SDE