Castro Almeida presented this information during the first of two days of debate on the Government’s Program at the Assembly of the Republic, after being questioned by Social Democrat deputy Miguel Santos about the government’s goal for Portugal to achieve 55% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in exports.
The Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion stated that exporting is crucial and announced that the government, through the Banco Português de Fomento, will pursue a “more ambitious” plan.
He highlighted the need for national companies to explore other markets for exports due to the uncertainty of U.S. tariff policies, acknowledging that other locations entail more risk and uncertainty.
Castro Almeida emphasized that businesses would want export credit insurance for new clients, necessitating increased state support and guarantees for such insurance.
“Banco de Fomento will be essential in this, also creating more export credit lines. This week, 37,000 small and medium-sized enterprises will receive letters with pre-approved export credits,” he stated.
According to the minister, this approach will initially mobilize 2.1 billion euros and soon an additional 1.4 billion euros for corporate internationalization.
During the debate, critical remarks came from Chega party deputies. João Tilly questioned the proposed Pact for the Interior, Francisco Gomes criticized the purportedly brief mention of Madeira in the Government’s Program, and Filipe Melo accused the government of ignoring major economic investments.
Castro Almeida expressed confusion over Filipe Melo’s point, countered Francisco Gomes by stating that all sections of the Government’s Program are dedicated to Madeira, and informed João Tilly that his government already implements positive discrimination policies favoring investments in interior regions.
“In terms of European funds, we implemented an unprecedented rule: those investing in the interior receive 20 percentage points more than similar investments on the coast,” he responded.
Furthermore, he indicated, “40% of funds are exclusively for the interior, which can also compete for the remaining 60%.”
“This has never been done before. It’s a positive differentiation for the interior that has never happened,” he emphasized.
Castro Almeida then heard Socialist leader Hugo Costa challenge claims of delays in the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) in 2024, arguing that such delays are now occurring.
The Economy and Territorial Cohesion Minister disagreed and assured there are no delays.
“Our last payment request was submitted ahead of schedule. We were the second country in Europe to do so,” he defended.
In response to the Socialist deputy, the minister also quoted European Council President, former Socialist Prime Minister António Costa.
“As suggested by the European Council President in a recent conversation in Lisbon, let’s not focus on nonexistent delays. Instead, let’s concentrate on the quality of investments,” he declared.
Castro Almeida reiterated, as he did in his initial remarks, that Portugal’s seventh payment request is “ready to be submitted once the sixth is approved.”
“And we are ensuring that the eighth payment request will also be submitted on time,” he added.
