The European Investment Bank (EIB) will advise Latvia on accelerating high-growth business sectors and strengthening its innovation ecosystem, as detailed in an EIB press release. Working with the Ministry of Economics and the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA), EIB experts will assess how businesses, research institutions, and emerging technologies are supported, and identify where policies and financing can be improved. The work runs until the end of 2026 and will also explore deeper Baltic-wide alignment with Estonia and Lithuania.
Latvia’s startup market is expanding fast, with around 560 companies generating over €600 million in turnover and employing more than 5,000 people at end-2025. But access to early-stage and scale-up financing remains uneven, deep-tech companies face persistent hurdles going international, and industry players are calling for a stronger project pipeline and better-aligned national support. Economics Minister Viktors Valainis said the EIB partnership gives Latvia “world-class expertise to sharpen our policies, strengthen financial instruments and unlock the full potential of Latvia’s innovation ecosystem.”
The EIB will deliver a capacity-building programme for public authorities involved in innovation and economic development, and will assess Riga Technical University’s development plan as a pilot for how major university investments can support national innovation goals. EIB Vice-President Karl Nehammer said the cooperation will help Latvia amplify its strengths and align with Europe’s most dynamic innovation networks. LIAA Director Ieva Jāgere added that the goal is to identify critical gaps — from early-stage financing to scale-up support — and develop practical, market-aligned solutions. The advisory work will conclude with a set of recommendations and a roadmap for reinforcing Latvia’s innovation system, delivered under the InvestEU Advisory Hub.
