Magazine N°161

NOSTALGIA IS OUT, HIGH-TECH IS IN

It's not a miracle, but it's close. Lisbon has come a long way. Since 2008 to be exact, when a severe economic recession emptied the city of its inhabitants, continuing a process that had already begun in the 1980s. Worse still, Portugal's young people were leaving the country, repeating the trend set by their parents in the post-war years. The difference was that these young people were highly educated, trained and specialised... And that was anything but good news for Portugal's future.

Then, following the intervention of the European Union and the austerity measures taken by the Portuguese government, the miracle actually happened. Enfinally almost, because it should be pointed out that Portugal's GDP has finally only ever returned to the level it was at in 2008, even though growth was +2.8% in 2017.

But the confiance is there again. And more than that. With a Lisbon that has learned the lessons of its misadventure by turning resolutely towards the future - when it comes to innovation, Portugal is second only to Belgium in the European Union - by banking on a tertiary sector essentially made up of high-tech and by committing itself wholeheartedly to this new way of approaching the professional world that is fleurit everywhere in the great capitals of the world. Coworking spaces, incubators and other accelerators are opening up one after the other, derelict places are getting a second lease of life, formerly disreputable neighbourhoods are gentrifienting and proper suits, the expression of a sometimes hyper-formal Portugal, are being cheerfully discarded in favourfit of Bermuda trainers. In the Baixa district alone, 350 start-ups have been created in seven years.

The Portuguese government made no mistake when it introduced measures to encourage the return of its young expatriates - and also to encourage foreigners to settle here - by offering tax exemptions for ten years on rental income, dividends, etc. 24,000 people currently benefit from these measures, including 6,000 French nationals.

The French to be precise. There are more than 50,000 of them in Portugal. It's not exactly a rush, but it's not far off. Retirees, of course, but also investors and many young creative people. As a result, last spring the city of Lisbon was awarded the French Tech label.

And that's good news too.

Serge Barret, Editor-in-Chief