All the reasons to choose France

The presentation of Choose France 2024 also stresses “all the reasons to choose France”: all the actions deployed by France over one year to make the country even more attractive for all foreign targets, such as investors, tourists, French speakers, entrepreneurs from all over the world and international students!

Significant investments

First of all, Choose France is an annual summit aiming at presenting the reforms led to boost French economy to major international companies. The seventh edition of the summit was held in May and registered a record 56 projects of foreign companies’ implementations in France reaching a total 15 billion euros and the prospects of creation of 10,000 jobs in all French regions. 

In terms of foreign investments, France confirmed its place of most attractive country in Europe (for the fifth year running) according to the annual barometer established by the firm EY. With 1,194 foreign investment projects announced, says the French government, “France leads before the United Kingdom, registering 985, and Germany, registering 733”. According to EY, foreign investors appreciate the quality of French workforce, the legal environment and the reliability of infrastructures.

French audacity

To better support these investments, a communication campaign focused on “brand France” intents to promote “French audacity”. The objective of the international campaign Choisir la France / Make It Iconic Choose France deployed in October 2023 in five countries (Germany, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and India) is was to “draw attention to convince investors to choose France” Kylian Mbappé, Sophie Adenot, Antoine Dupont, Nina Métayer or Philippe Starck.

As the French government website underlines, this campaign was deployed throughout the world on the diplomatic network and operators of the State to “bring out the audacity and innovation spirit that characterize France visible every day in its economic activity, its know-how, its cultural and artistic vitality, its gastronomy and its touristic richness”.

First tourism destination in the world

The information website presents all these aspects of “French attractiveness”. And the first is tourism, since “France is still first tourism destination in the world”.

According to recent statistics, international tourism revenue in France reached a record 57.9 billion euros in 2022, although France “has not even fully recovered the level of foreign visitors of the pre-Covid period, with 75 million international tourists welcomed in 2022, compared with 90 million in 2019”. 

The richness of the French offer is acclaimed by foreign tourists. For example, France “shines thanks to its agriculture and gastronomy”. According to the information website, French agriculture stands for 18% of the European agriculture production and first French industrial sector. France, “a land of excellence and know-how”, registers 101 Protected Designation of Origin for food products and 384 for wine and liquors (to drink responsibly!)

An ecosystem of young companies

And France is also a land of entrepreneurs. The French Tech Mission, created to position the country “at the heart of the world” ambitions to turn France “into one of the most attractive countries” for startups, talents and investors. With the French Tech Visa, a simplified process allowing international talents from the tech sector to settle in France, the Mission leveraged “a vibrant ecosystem of innovative young companies in France”.

In 2024, the French Tech ecosystem has turned into a “true engine of French economy”. It spreads throughout France thanks to a wide network including 115 capitals and communities certified French Tech, including 67 abroad, and over 60 French Tech correspondents in administrations.

Cultural assets 

France has even more assets to be attractive and radiant. And the first is Francophonie, thanks to French institutes and offices implemented all over the world to make French culture shine. Supervised by the ministry of foreign affairs and the ministry of culture, the Institute “drives the French cultural network internationally and implements programmes to promotes culture and French language in the world and the circulation of artists”.

As an example, French animated cinema “shines in the dark rooms of cinema all over the world”. Indeed, France is third industry in the world for animated cinema, says the national centre of cinema and animation (French CNC). Two third of entries are registered abroad for French animation movies, a total 70 million viewers between 2013 and 2022.

Explore more: 

- The review of Choose France