Operation seduction for the future

President of the Champagne-Ardenne regional council since 2004, left-wing politician Jean-Paul Bachy, 62, trained as a sociologist and is a graduate of the Paris Institut d’Etudes Politiques and the Paris Institut des Sciences Sociales du Travail. He has been deputy mayor of Charleville-Mézières responsible for personnel and economic affairs (1980-1983), a Euro M.P. (1984-1988), town councillor for Sedan (1989-2008) and finally, Mayor of Sedan (1995-2004).

Commerce International: The economic dynamism of the Champagne-Ardenne region is not as well known internationally as that of other French regions. What assets does it possess that would help it gain greater recognition?
Jean-Paul Bachy: “That is not completely accurate. Firstly, the Champagne-Ardenne region enjoys international visibility thanks to a product that is the envy of the entire world: champagne! But that’s not all. For three or four years now, foreign investors have been becoming more numerous in our region because it possesses a host of advantages. I would like to point out that the French Agency for international investments (AFII) in its 2007 report on foreign investments that led to job creation in France, places the Champagne-Ardenne region in 7th position of all the French regions with 1,450 jobs created or maintained. What’s more, the Champagne-Ardenne region is at the heart of Europe, located between the Paris region and the Benelux countries  on a major economic development route. It offers opportunities to create important activities since the price of land and property and the cost of living in general are much lower than in neighbouring regions. Besides the champagne industry, our region is developing important economic sectors: agro-resources, automobiles, advanced metallurgy, logistics, packing and packaging, textiles and wood.”

Transport is regularly mentioned as being a major priority for the development of the regions. Is this the case in Champagne-Ardenne?
J.-P. B.: “Unquestionably! Since the month of June 2007 and the coming of the East European high-speed TGV train link, Paris is just 45 minutes away from Reims, and Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport is just 30 minutes away. The TGV also improves services to the region’s main towns (Châlons-en-Champagne, Charleville-Mé-zières, Reims, Rethel, Sedan, and Vitry-le-François). The south of the region is served by the Paris-Basel line which is currently being modernised. A business park near the new TGV station in Bezannes, near Reims, is a positive factor in attracting service companies. In the air sector, Paris-Vatry airport is the third biggest freight airport in France and its regular traffic is rising by 13% a year. The creation of its passenger terminal is a growth factor for the future. There is an excellent motorway network with the A4 (Paris – Strasbourg), the A5, the A26, the A31, the A34 (linking Belgium to the Rhône valley) and the A203. With regards to river transport, the ports of Nogent-sur-Seine and Givet are linked to the European wide profile waterway network.”

The Champagne-Ardenne region has 8 PAR (parcs d’activité de référence) label business parks open to investors. What are their particularities?
J.-P. B.: “Champagne-Ardenne is the only region to have set up a business park reference label with a high-level offer of services that includes access by road and motorway. These PAR are currently in their development or marketing phase. By way of example, the Bazeilles-Douzy / Daigny departmental business park dedicated to the service and industrial sectors  is already home to Unilin and Alvéolaire. The Recy-Saint Martin industrial park, dedicated to the logistics and industrial sectors ( over 115 ha) has succeeded in attracting the FM Logistic and Geodis Walbaum companies. There are also the logistics zones of the Paris-Vatry airport (transport and transit), the Grand Troyes park (industrial and services), the Aube logistics park (logistics, transport, corporate services), the industrial park of the northern Haute-Marne (all sectors), the Plein East economic park (industrial and services) and lastly, the economic activities centre of the Pays de Langres . In Champagne-Ardenne, investors are assured of finding an offer of  high-quality land!”

The regional economic development agency CADev (Champagne-Ardenne development) was founded in 2005. How would you evaluate its work?
J.-P. B.: “CADev’s objective is to facilitate the arrival of French and international investors. From this point of view, it’s a success. In 2007 and 2008, CADev was responsible for the creation of 1,500 jobs thanks to the arrival of investors from abroad. Two years ago, Châlons-en-Champagne, for example, welcomed the Cinquième Saison company, a subsidiary of the Icelandic group Bakkavör and specialised in the production of bagged salads and fresh pre-prepared products. CADev has signed a contract with the AFII and collaborates with a highly active CCI network.”

In this period of international financial crisis, unemployment is steadily rising. What is the Champagne-Ardenne region doing in this respect?
J.-P. B.: “Job creation depends on three key factors: investment, training and innovation. Our strategy for increasing the region’s attractiveness is on the right road. In terms of training, we must make a priority of all those young people leaving education without any qualifications. In terms of innovation, we have multiplied by
5 the credits allocated to research since 2005 and this has borne fruit. I should mention in passing the University of Reims, with its 25,000 students and the technological university of Troyes. The big Paris schools have been considering the possibility of opening establishments in our region (namely the Institut d’études politiques and the Ecole Centrale).”

Investors are increasingly taking quality of life into account when moving to a region. Would you agree that the region may have some progress to make in this area?
J.-P. B.: “It can’t be denied that our image is not what it should be in this area. Nonetheless, studies carried out show that those people who come to Champagne-Ardenne – mostly from the Paris region – stay here. We have the means to improve the image of living standards here and I would like to be a sort of salesman for my region in this respect.”

After 5 years at the head of the Champagne-Ardenne region, will you stand for re-election in 2010?
J.-P. B.: “The Champagne-Ardenne region is known for being traditionally conservative, but I don’t want to develop partisan quarrels. My role is above all to federate and to involve myself in priority projects for structuring the region. I think I have succeeded in this field and I would like to remain in order to pursue the work on economic recovery we have started. If the regional elections take place in 2010, then yes, I will be a candidate for my own succession.”