We all know that the 2012 Foreign Investment Law aimed to open Andorra to international capital and new sectors, as well as to new talent, in order to diversify an economy that was overly dependent on tourism, commerce and finance.
Despite the good intentions, however, almost fifteen years later, it must be said that the results have not been exactly as expected, and the arrival of new residents has helped sustain growth, but without the expected economic diversification.
In fact, opening the door does not guarantee the arrival of the type of talent and business the country needs to transform its productive model. The result has been a more open economy, yes, but still not very innovative in comparative terms and without a clear specialization in knowledge-based sectors.
Andorra does not even appear in the Global Innovation Index ranking, while the countries leading the way — Switzerland, Sweden, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Finland — have spent decades investing heavily in R&D, education and high value-added business ecosystems.
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More selectivity, higher standards
The focus now is on being more selective and thus, with the two Omnibus Laws and the new foreign investment regulation, the requirements for new investors have increased, requiring effective economic activity within a period of 18 months, strengthening the foreign investment register and focusing on projects that genuinely generate added value.
At the same time, the National Plan for Innovation and Economic Diversification has been presented, and the Office for Innovation and Economic Diversification has been created, under the Ministry of the Presidency, Economy, Labour and Housing.
This office must be the stable governance and implementation structure that ensures the Plan does not remain just a nice PowerPoint presentation, but is instead rolled out through to 2036, with a gradual increase in investment in innovation from just over 1.5% of GDP to around 7–8%.
In addition, the Plan has been presented with a powerful narrative: turning Andorra into an “international high-innovation laboratory,” with hyper-specialized sectors and an economic fabric based on research, technology and knowledge.
The big question
The question we now need to ask ourselves is: will this shift be a genuine national project with a real commitment to implementation, or merely a political marketing operation ahead of a new electoral cycle?
We are already aware of other experiences and projects that have ended up in the dustbin of history.
And, in the meantime, Andorran citizens have seen their purchasing power stagnate or decline, housing become unaffordable, and the promise of a “new economy” take far too long to translate into better wages and real opportunities.
What do the countries leading innovation teach us?
If we look at the countries that lead in innovation, we see some common elements that Andorra should take on as unavoidable obligations.
Switzerland has led the Global Innovation Index for more than fourteen years, with strong R&D intensity and a highly involved private sector.
Singapore has spent decades building a technological and scientific hub with meticulous planning, a demanding education system and an intelligent openness to global talent.
Sweden and Finland link innovation with the welfare state: strong public services, equal opportunities and an ecosystem where entrepreneurship is not synonymous with taking a leap into the void.
The lesson
The lesson is clear: innovation cannot be improvised through legislation or press conferences. It is built with consistency, regulatory stability, sustained investment and, above all, coherence between what is said and what is done.
And this is where Andorra’s credibility is at stake. That is why I would like to highlight three clear messages:
First message
This project cannot belong to a single government or a single party. If we are talking about a Plan running until 2036, we need a State pact — or a national pact — that safeguards the core principles of innovation and diversification policy, regardless of who is in government.
Second message
Innovation does not only mean tech startups and unicorns. It means rethinking:
- Healthcare: selective private provision, research, teaching
- Education: in-person university campus, distinctive academic programmes
- Tourism: health, MICE
- Sport: high-performance sport, major events
- And culture: national museum, strategic nature and mountain offering
Third message
Innovation only makes sense if it translates into an improvement in citizens’ purchasing power and quality of life.
And alongside these messages, there are three concrete commitments that public authorities must make:
- Radical transparency in the implementation of the Plan (objectives, timelines, budgets, indicators)
- Genuine participation by civil society and the business community in the governance of the new Office
- And regular accountability regarding what has been achieved, what has not, and why
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Looking ahead
I want to believe that, in a few years, Andorra will not only be a safe and fiscally competitive country, but also a small laboratory of ideas and projects that bring value to the world.
A country where the word “innovation” is not just a label in an economic promotion dossier, but an everyday reality in schools, hospitals, businesses and institutions.
If the opening of 2012 was the first step, imperfect but necessary, now it is time to take the second: moving from quantity to quality, from capital to talent, from easy growth to sustainable productivity.
The challenge is enormous, but so is the opportunity.
As always, everything will depend on whether we are capable of looking beyond the next electoral cycle and building, together, a national project that honours the very best of Andorra: its ability to reinvent itself without losing its soul.
