Business Europe

The voice of European business

As Europe’s largest business organisation, BusinessEurope is a leading advocate for growth and competitiveness at the EU level. Founded in 1958, we represent 42 national business federations from 36 countries in the EU, European Economic Area and EU’s neighbourhood.

We stand up for companies across the continent and campaign on the issues that influence their performance most. We work closely with the European Parliament, Commission, and Council to ensure that that the voice of business is heard in EU policy-making. As a recognised social partner, we are engaged in the European social dialogue, and can negotiate agreements with the ETUC. We also represent European business internationally, ensuring that Europe remains globally competitive.

Our Vision and Mission

At BusinessEurope, our vision is to make Europe the most competitive, sustainable, and prosperous place to live, work, and invest. As the leading advocate for growth and competitiveness, we work with our member federations to ensure the business community’s voice is heard in European policy-making. We advocate for Europe’s global competitiveness. We engage with the European Parliament, Commission, and Council, shaping policies that foster a strong, business-friendly environment. As a recognised social partner, we represent enterprises of all sizes in 36 countries in the cross-sectoral European social dialogue.

EU-Africa relations

In a new paper published in September, BusinessEurope argues that the EU-Africa relationship offers great investment and trade opportunities, but stronger and more targeted action from policymakers is needed to overcome existing hurdles. Although the EU remains the top trading partner for African countries – with an estimated €467.2 billion in goods and services trade – the share of African imports in total EU trade has been declining.

BusinessEurope Director General Markus J. Beyrer said:

“With the youngest and fastest-growing population on the planet, Africa is set to become a key driver of the global economy in the coming decades. The EU must unlock the full potential of its relationship with this crucial region.

The EU should support African partners in making the African Continental Free Trade Area a reality and streamline existing trade frameworks – particularly rules of origin – while expanding current agreements to include services, competition and intellectual property.

It is equally important to improve the investment climate across Africa by fostering robust institutions, legal certainty and good governance. It is crucial to support governments in building skills and education, expanding access to finance and developing infrastructure.

Finally, Africa and the EU are essential partners in the global transition to clean and renewable energy. The EU should deploy a range of instruments, including the new Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships and Sustainable Investment Facilitation Agreements, to support this collective effort.”

Read the paper in full below

Empowering European business through the Global Gateway initiative

BusinessEurope views the Global Gateway as a strong opportunity to help European companies build advanced, resilient and trusted infrastructure and connectivity in developing countries in line with their development needs and the EU’s strategic interests.

The strategy should focus on enhancing the EU’s “value proposition” by strengthening value chain integration in key sectors and engaging more effectively with global partners. Making the Global Gateway’s instruments work effectively for the private sector should be a priority now. This means centralising and enhancing access to information for firms, developing funding and blending tools that effectively reduce risks, establishing effective consultation mechanisms between implementing partners and firms, and reviewing evaluation criteria for procurement to allow European firms a more level playing field with their competitors.

As a member of the Global Gateway’s Business Advisory Group, BusinessEurope actively informs the Commission on business priorities and interests ensuring that the strategy takes into account the needs of the private sector.