Development of Kaunas business and new technologies, investments, culture and the Government’s attention to Kaunas – this is what Kauno Diena talked to Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonyte about.
– What is the purpose of the visit to Kaunas?
– Now I can shape my agenda more freely, it does not need to be applied to specific events, I arranged visits with representatives of business and culture, because I associate Kaunas with business, science and culture. You want to visit those businesses that have an additional nuance – the green course, because this is the area in which we will live for the next decade. In addition, high added value is also important, and Kaunas is also a city of universities, so the choice of businesses here is considerable.
The next meeting is with the representatives of the Amsterdam Architecture Museum, because this is one of the projects where you can not only visit yourself, but also bring guests from abroad.
Position: I. Šimonytė assured that the Government pays equal attention to all municipalities. (Photo by Regiment Zakshensk)
– Why did you choose the Amsterdam Architecture Museum? In your opinion, how important are such objects in the general cultural field?
– I know people who implement this idea. It is extremely nice when such initiatives appear, which are not dictated by the government, but simply enthusiasts who see an interesting opportunity, dedicate their time to create something that others would like to see. Sometimes you don’t necessarily expect that from business people, because culture and business are like separate areas, and here people have seen a niche in a perhaps somewhat unexpected space and can offer fantastic things to the city. This is pride in what Kaunas has.
Recently, the Prime Minister of Andorra visited Lithuania, who also visited Kaunas, because several students from that country are studying medicine here. He asked me to describe what Kaunas looks like, and I said that if you look for the capital here, you will definitely find it, because in the interwar period Kaunas was a city that created everything and now has many art deco style buildings. Then the Prime Minister was very satisfied and praised that Kaunas is indeed a wonderful city.
– Let’s get back to business. What do you think of Kaunas businesses, the technologies they implement and develop in the context of the country? Can Kaunas be considered a breakthrough city?
– The fact that there is a technological university in Kaunas and it gives the city a certain sign that there will be technology and innovation here. Besides, this is not just any university, but one with a history and a good reputation. The synergy of business and technology takes place in Kaunas.
As long as I have been working in the Government, I have had to think not only about schools and teachers, but also about lecturers and researchers, to allocate quite a lot of funding to them. In the fall, we will have reached an average of 150 percent of the national average salary for teachers and researchers, as we committed to. It is a notable focus on science and academic activities. Business is a field that either consumes products developed by scientists or needs people trained by a university.
Photo of regiment Zakshensk.
There are excellent opportunities for developing technologies in Kaunas, because everything is in place – both researchers and businesses. Kaunas continues to strengthen these areas. As a result, the Kaunas Free Economic Zone (LEZ) is also growing, where there are all kinds of engineering companies. It seems to me that this is one of the biggest advantages of Kaunas: there are many students and businesses that can employ those students.
– The business allocates considerable funds for various research and experimental activities. Could the Government contribute to speed up the investigations?
– Even if it could, it contributes. One of the subjects of the national agreement is investments in scientific research and experimental development, which by 2030 should reach 1 percent GDP (gross domestic product – last ed.). Despite the fact that our GDP has been growing rapidly for several years, the Government has also increased funding for research, and that growth is about 20-30 percent annually. Of course, funding is allocated to the whole of Lithuania, but such a growth in funding for this area has never happened before.
The purpose of the tool is to enable our higher education institutions to create innovations and offer them to businesses. It will be like a clutch between science and business to make more discoveries and apply them in industry.
– Last year, the Seimas approved the expansion of the Kaunas SEZ, almost doubling its area. The Kaunas SEZ is already receiving praise for its good management. In your opinion, how important is such an object for the entire Kaunas region?
– This brings benefits in all senses – good jobs for people, good infrastructure, on the state level – economic promotion and GDP creation. At the same time, these are investments related to well-paid jobs, as companies creating high value-added production are established in the SEZ. Of course, it is also easy to implement innovations here.
It should be noted that the success of the SEZ in the country is not the same, but the Kaunas SEZ is definitely an example of success. Of course, the problem is that you cannot expand it where it is now, because the land area is limited. Other decisions need to be made. The government has proposed to expand the area, and where it will be will still need to be worked on, as a large plot is needed. There is also a demand from companies for especially large plots of land, reaching tens of hectares in area. They must be developed, the infrastructure must be adapted, so those searches will definitely take place.
The more companies that create the LEZ, the better it will be. There were calculations that if all 1 thousand ha area, there could be about 20 thousand. jobs, and investments would amount to billions. These are very impressive numbers. Of course, this will not happen overnight, because first you need to expand the territory and attract investors.
We had to communicate with more than one investor before he came to the Kaunas SEZ, and usually everyone said that we were coming with a limited vision, but after a few years, we heard from those companies that they would expand their activities and hire additional people, because the conditions here are really very good.
Photo of regiment Zakshensk.
– When the development of the Kaunas SEZ was approved, it was proposed to do it not in the Kaunas district, where this zone is established, but near Jonava. Is it appropriate?
– It is necessary to assess how many opportunities there are to expand where the SEZ is now, without competing with the development of the city and other solutions. An area of 500 hectares is not so easy to find, so, of course, there will definitely be an assessment of a specific area. The goal is for the Kaunas SEZ to be maximally consolidated, but it is clear that it will not be possible to do it in one place. This is a project of the whole region, not only of the city or district of Kaunas, so that development should be evaluated in such a way that it is convenient for the region. Of course, 20 ha will not be crushed and the SEZ will not be scattered in pieces. The best solution will be sought, buy-out from private individuals will be evaluated if necessary, and then a plan will be adopted for the development itself, in which directions the SEZ will expand.
– How to attract investors so that they create products with high added value in the Kaunas SEZ?
– Investors are best attracted by those who are already working here. When inviting investors to invest in a green field, investors need to be additionally convinced, they have many questions. But when you already have something that works, and it works successfully, all you have to do is mention the companies and investors already have a source to talk to about terms. This kind of advertising usually helps. After attracting a large, well-known investor, others follow. Those that are already working are like examples of success.
– You have scheduled meetings with representatives of business and culture in Kaunas. Why are there no meetings with the Kaunas government and the municipal administration on the agenda?
– We work with the city government, we have all kinds of common issues with the municipality. We had common challenges during the pandemic, during the reception of Ukrainian war refugees. Ministries, the chancellery, and the crisis center work with the municipality. Together we organized the European Capital of Culture. Nothing personal – somehow we don’t have separate meetings with the authorities in other cities either.
– Nevertheless, it seems that Kaunas remains a little disadvantaged and the city lacks the attention of the Government. For example, there was the opening of the stadium, the only one in Lithuania, but neither you nor the then Minister of Education, Science and Sports attended.
– All municipalities sometimes have higher expectations of the central government, but otherwise all institutions work, have practical matters with the municipality, solve the issues that need to be solved, in education, social security or other fields.
It’s not like I cut ribbons in other cities. In general, I think people are happy with completed projects, but there is usually no shortage of ribbon-cutters. I’m more of one of those people who deal with specific issues when they need to be dealt with, rather than being somehow happy that someone else has done something.
– Could Kaunas Mayor Visvaldas Matijošaitis’s business in Russia be the reason for the distance being maintained? Now that the business is sold, maybe there will be more collaboration?
– Mr. Matijošaitis’s business is his own issue as a politician. He himself should be responsible for this. It seems to me that the problem with the Government’s work is that there are 60 municipalities in Lithuania, and all of them have specific problems. Some problems are universal, which are solved by the central government, such as the payment of teachers’ work, etc. Sometimes it happens that self-government problems are local. It seems to me that my task is to work equally with all municipalities, without discriminating against them based on what they have or don’t have. If there are problems, we try to solve them through all the institutions that are responsible. It is not the case that only the prime minister has to solve all the issues and review all the projects. There are also ministries that really work in all municipalities within the limits of their competences.
There are excellent opportunities for developing technologies in Kaunas, because everything is in place – both researchers and businesses.
– Do you think that the Government’s attention to Kaunas is enough?
– It seems to me that Kaunas has as much attention as it should have, just like other big and small cities.
– How could cooperation between the Government and the municipality be improved? Maybe new formats are needed for less miscommunication and more efficient work?
– For cooperation, we have a bilateral commission between the Association of Municipalities and the Government. We usually try to deal with issues that are relevant to everyone, for example when the Local Government Act or land management matters have changed. As a result, the municipalities had many questions, so we have already tried to solve this at the Government level, so that the same practice is applied in all municipalities. Of course, there are things that arise only in a certain municipality, but usually in a specific area, so they are decided by the people responsible for it in the ministries.
Photo of regiment Zakshensk.
– How could the Government help Kaunas to prosper?
– The government must help the prosperity of not a specific city or municipality. It must do everything so that people throughout Lithuania can release their initiatives, creativity and further enrich Lithuania and improve the life of the country.
We are celebrating the 20th anniversary of EU membership. Progress during that time in any city – Kaunas, Klaipėda, Zarasai, it doesn’t matter which city – both in terms of economic, environmental improvement and other indicators is enormous. Life in Lithuania is definitely higher quality, more comfortable, more beautiful, better workplaces, there are excellent employers, a wide selection of culture. We organize festivals, capitals of culture, Song festivals. All of this is something to be very proud of. It seems to me that the Government’s job is precisely to make such decisions that would allow everyone in Lithuania to feel good.
According to global happiness indices, the people of Lithuania seem to be much happier than in other European countries, despite the fact that we have faced quite a few challenges recently – both the pandemic and the Russian aggression in Ukraine raise feelings, because it is close and painful. However, people still do their jobs, help others, how society participates in all kinds of initiatives, they see the meaning of volunteering. All this enriches us every day.
Photo of regiment Zakshensk.
– During those 20 years, Lithuania grew up to Europe?
– I think that in some issues we are even ahead of the European average, because it is easier for us to adapt to innovations. Our privilege was that we had to create a lot, because it didn’t exist before, and we could take what was latest at the time. After all, there are times when people go to other places and are indignant that they cannot pay with cards as much as in Lithuania, and the internet is slower. We did it from scratch and because of that we were able to take advantage of what was new. Of course, people also needed to change, but now we definitely have things that can be shown to others how good we are. Overall, the progress we have made in these 20 years is incredible, but real.
Photo of regiment Zakshensk.
