The Investment and Development Agency of Latvia

The Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA) is a direct administration institution subordinated to the Minister of Economics of the Republic of Latvia. Established in 1993 as the Latvian Development Agency, it was reorganised into the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia in 2003. In 2016 LIAA was merged with Latvian Tourism Development Agency (LTDA) in order to introduce more effective governance of the tourism industry. LIAA offers assistance throughout the process of setting up operations in Latvia, acting as a first point of contact and as a "one-stop-shop" in assisting investors and in developing tailored solutions to meet their specific needs. LIAA maintains and regularly updates a database of Latvian enterprises to facilitate partner searches for investment projects and for exporting or subcontracting businesses. The Agency also operates a database of different types of real estate suitable for a broad range of investment projects. In 2004 LIAA became one of the institutions implementing state support programmes, advancing grants to entrepreneurs to increase their competitiveness. State aid for 2014-2020 will focus on research, technology development and innovation; raising competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises; and increasing energy efficiency. LIAA is also involved in the implementation of national programmes on export and innovation promotion and participates in EU Horizon 2020 projects.