Sweden's Almedalen Week is a unique forum where politicians, organisations, businesses and interested citizens come together to exchange ideas and debate public policy. With over 2,000 events and tens of thousands of participants, this year's week was packed with discussions on artificial intelligence (AI), digitalisation, security, energy, sustainable investments and infrastructure.
We have been attending Almedalen for many years and value the opportunity to participate and contribute to these discussions. This year we took part in several panels on themes such as the Single Market and Competitiveness, AI and Sustainability.
One of the key events was a panel at Tech Arena entitled “From startup to global success – How digitalisation is helping Swedish companies reach more countries”. The discussion was attended by Helena Hanell McKelvey, Head of Public Policy at Amazon Nordics, Håkan Gävler, State Secretary at the Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade, the CIO of the Swedish Ministry of Commerce, the Secretary General of the National Trade Commission and representatives of Amazon's selling partners. Knicks and Lynham DesignThe panel looked at how digitalisation can help Swedish companies expand internationally and highlighted the need to reduce barriers within the EU Single Market to give SMEs greater access to new markets. Secretary of State Gebrell highlighted Amazon's contribution as a driver of growth and exports for Swedish companies.
The Swedish government has declared strengthening household purchasing power a key priority following years of high inflation. Against this backdrop, Amazon and the Swedish Retail Institute (HUI Research) have published a report on how e-commerce has improved Swedish household purchasing power during the economic downturn. The results were discussed in a panel discussion with Johan Paccamonti, Director of Planning at the Ministry of Finance, Christian Seth, Secretary General of the Productivity Commission, and Maria Mikkonen, Chief Economist at the Swedish Ministry of Trade, who highlighted the positive aspects of e-commerce for Swedish customers and small and medium-sized enterprises, and the importance of investments in productivity for Swedish companies.
Rebecca Berndtsson, Nordic Public Policy Manager, took part in panels on green innovation and sustainable investment, including panels with titles such as “Green technology and global investment – how Sweden's next big export success will come” and “Sustainable e-commerce – present, past and future”. During the discussion she highlighted our role in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and highlighted the environmental benefits of e-commerce through optimised packaging and alternative fuels.
With over 2,100 events organised by over 1,200 organisers and a growing number of participants, Almedalen Week continues to be an important platform for dialogue and collaboration. We look forward to staying involved and furthering our mission of supporting SMEs, digitalisation and sustainability.
