The AmCham Czech Republic Board of Directors discussed our second half of 2017 advocacy plan and the potential impact of the parliamentary elections on the economy at its final meeting of the 2016-2017 membership year. Advocacy priorities follow:

1)    Advocacy: Incentives for Research Investment

Aim: Increase company investment into research to 2 times the amount of other types of investment into research.
Using package of incentives recently enacted in Belgium, work with relevant government ministries to prepare package of incentives focused on the hiring of commercial researchers. Develop proposal that ties up to 10% of public research investment to current high value-added exporters with significant operations in the Czech Republic.

2)    Advocacy: Immigration for Skilled Workforce and University students

Aim:
•    Improve recruitment of EU nationals from targeted countries (East Germany, Spain, Italy). 
•    Develop systemic program for recruiting STEM students from other Central European countries.
•    Develop systemic policy for increasing non-EU qualified workforce and accelerating permit process. 

3)    Advocacy: Measurable Objective for Healthcare

Aim:

•    To introduce performance-related drivers for health care to replace the current process and price-related ones. 
•    To establish a policy-oriented, systemic approach to health care legislation, in order to reduce the political influence.
•    To align policy approach with the demographic reality. 
 

4)    Advocacy: Commuter infrastructure for Prague and Brno

Aim:
•    To address labor demand of cities through better access to regions. 
 

5)    Promotion: Labor Costs

Aim:
•    To organize a fact-based discussion on whether the current system for funding the social security system results in the optimal fairness and effectiveness. 

6)    Promotion: Key Development Projects for Prague and Brno

Aim:
•    To push the government to support certain development projects that would result in wide economic benefit for the country. 

Recommendation for Brno to be made in summer.

Read details in the document attached below.