Is #Lithuania becoming the "#Switzerland of the #Baltics"?
Small country. No natural resources. And yet, in twenty years, Lithuania has closed the wealth gap with Western Europe faster than almost anyone predicted — from roughly half the EU's average wealth in 2004 to nearly 90% of it today.
No oil. No minerals. No giant domestic market. So what's driving it? Fintech, lasers, biotech, and a startup scene that punches way above the weight of a country of 2.8 million people.
This Wednesday, I'm interviewing the person steering that strategy, Lithuania's Minister of Economy and Innovation, Edvinas Grikšas
Some potential questions:
– How do you build an #innovation economy from (almost) nothing?
– Is "small, resource-poor, innovation-driven" really a repeatable playbook — the way it worked for Switzerland?
– And then there's the neighbourhood. #Vilnius sits roughly 30 minutes from the #Belarus border, with #Russia not far beyond. How do you attract Western capital into Lithuanian companies, manage sanctions, and keep investors confident sitting that close to both?
If you had five minutes with @Edvinas Grikšas, what would YOU ask him?
Drop your question in the comments — I'll bring the best ones into the interview on Wednesday and share his answers here. 😃
