If the Walloon competitiveness clusters put in place by the Marshall Plan and Marshall Plan 2.Green are today proving a resounding success, it is above all Mecatech – the mechanical engineering cluster – that is making the front pages.

An agreement was recently signed between representatives of Walloon precision engineering and two Netherlands “Topsectoren”, as part of an express trade mission.

The aim of the letter of intent is twofold: one, to rapidly develop trade relations and, two, to put in place new projects. The initiative thus paves the way for the second stage of development of the competitiveness clusters, aimed at giving them international scope.

Mecatech is active in the mechanical engineering sector and develops functional systems, industrial processes and associated services for the construction, energy and automotive industries. It brings together large companies, SMEs, universities and research and competence centres.

Although outsiders to the agreement, a number of other companies and universities were also in attendance. Despite the undeniable geographical proximity, this mission was a first. Other plans, such as the partnership between the ports of Rotterdam and Liège and cross-border trade in the framework of the INTERREG programme, were also mentioned. In 2012, AWEX opened a second office in the Netherlands to support the one in The Hague and strengthen its presence in Wallonia.