• The Foreign Investment Promotion Agency was created in 2016. Since then, it has accelerated the installation of projects worth US$18.66 billion from 30 countries.

InvestChile, the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency, celebrates seven years this 2023. Since its creation in 2016, the agency has provided services to more than 1,900 companies, which have led to the installation of 170 projects worth US$18.66 billion. These initiatives, from companies from 30 countries, have injected 10,938 jobs into the Chilean economy in the last seven years.

InvestChile’s executive director, Karla Flores, highlighted the work carried out by the agency in these seven years. “In our first year, we closed our portfolio with almost 200 projects worth some US$7.7 billion. Last year, we supported 476 initiatives that exceeded US$28.3 billion, located in fifteen of Chile’s sixteen regions. We are a small agency, but we have held more than 4,600 business meetings and more than 520 activities in 40 countries,” she said.

Flores also detailed how InvestChile’s focus has evolved to promote a proactive strategy to attract investment in areas that are attracting attention around the world. “In addition to the sectors that have regularly concentrated foreign investment in the country, such as mining, energy and concessions, we have gone out looking for companies that can contribute to Chile’s current challenges, such as the circular economy, knowledge-based services, fintech, sustainable tourism, green hydrogen and energy storage,” she stated.

Pioneers in digital marketing

InvestChile has been one of the world’s pioneering agencies in the use of digital marketing as a tool to attract investment. The use of digital techniques, content marketing and inbound marketing has been an example in Latin America and one of the few success stories of this type throughout the world.

Through the generation of high-value content for investors and the development of 150 digital campaigns, InvestChile has added 112 new investment projects worth more than US$2 billion to its portfolio since 2018, when the agency began to use digital marketing as a strategy to attract investment.

The progress in this period is notable. In 2018, eight projects were secured through digital campaigns, which represented 4.4% of the total initiatives in the InvestChile portfolio; while at the end of last year, that number increased to 31 projects, representing 25% of the total initiatives supported by the agency.

Multicultural agency

InvestChile is currently made up of 55 staff members of five different nationalities, speaking seven languages. 52% of the staff are women. It is a technical agency that was established from a model developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). As part of its professional structure, its first and second leadership levels are chosen through senior public

management contests. As of this year, the agency has operated investment promotion offices in six countries: the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.

“I appreciate the work of all our institution’s staff members. Without them, we would not be celebrating all these achievements,” InvestChile’s executive director concluded.