The director of the Latvian Investment and Development Agency (LIAA), Kaspars Rožkalns, is set to conclude his tenure at the end of this month, with the announcement made on September 8th. His final day in office will be September 29th, and the State Chancellery will soon initiate an open competition to fill the position of LIAA director.
Reflecting on his time as director, Rožkalns expressed his initial aspiration to reshape the image of the public administration institution. He aimed to transform LIAA into an organization dedicated to serving society’s interests. Significant efforts were made to enhance entrepreneurs’ trust and improve the quality of services offered by LIAA during his three-year tenure. While progress was made in initiating organizational culture change, the absence of clear national priorities for enhancing the business environment limited the realization of his original vision.
Rožkalns noted the importance of departing from traditional approaches to swiftly offer solutions that yield the greatest benefits at a given moment. He highlighted how unnecessary obstacles often hinder progress, leading to a loss of competitive advantage due to the lack of speed.
Edmunds Valantis, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy, commended Rožkalns for enabling the institution to operate more proactively and flexibly, with a heightened focus on understanding entrepreneurs’ needs. During Rožkalns’ leadership, export and investment attraction indicators experienced improvement.
In the interim period until a permanent appointment is made, Iveta Strupkaja, the deputy director of LIAA for export affairs, will assume the role of head of the institution.
