"Spain has a great future and we have an exciting shared project", says Mariano Rajoy

Las Ventas bullring, Madrid

President of the Government Rajoy expressed gratitude to the start-ups attending the South Summit for setting such a fine example. "You have made a place for yourselves in the future of a country that has decided to get rid of certain burdens and stereotypes of the past in order to set out along a new path towards tomorrow by embracing a shared project", he said.

Government support for entrepreneurs

Mariano Rajoy stressed that the Government of Spain has adopted numerous measures to support projects by professionals and entrepreneurs, highlighting three in particular: the Entrepreneur Support Act; the "innovation" in terms of Corporate Income Tax; and the Second Chance Act.

He went on to say that all these decisions "reflect a carefully designed philosophy of support for your success and complete confidence in your capabilities". He then added that "you will always have your country behind you, during the good times and during the bad times. You will have a government beside you that is proud of you and aware that the future of our society is closely linked to your future".

Two million jobs in the next few years

The President of the Government stressed that, after overcoming "one of the worst periods in our recent history", we can now look forward to "a promising recovery for everyone". Today, "Spain has a great future and we have an exciting shared project", he said.

He also stressed that "the goal is to maintain the current pace of job creation and extend that trend into the coming years" to create two million jobs.

He said that Spain has everything it needs to become "a major centre for innovation and talent, for entrepreneurial development and passion", and encouraged entrepreneurs to be steadfast and never give up because "Spain has an entrepreneurial future ahead of it thanks to people like you".

South Summit 20015

Pool Moncloa/David MudarraDuring his speech, Mariano Rajoy stressed that the South Summit 2015 that began on Wednesday in Las Ventas has not only "converted the city of Madrid into a major focus for innovation and entrepreneurship worldwide" but has also "put Spain on the agenda to be among the vanguards of international investment".

President of the Government Rajoy explained that the South Summit has "already become the most important conference in this field anywhere in southern Europe" and demonstrates that "entrepreneurial spirit has an unbeatable support network in Spain" and represents "one of the strategic assets of the Spain Brand".

Among others, the South Summit 2015 is being attended by Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple; María Benjumea, Chairwoman of Spain Startup; Rúdiger Schmidt, Director of Technology at Banco Sabadell; Francisco Ruiz Antón, Head of Public Policy and Government Relations Google Spain and Portugal; Diego Alcázar, Chairman of IE Business School; José María Álvarez Pallete, Managing Director of Telefónica; Borja Prado, Chairman of Endesa; and, finally, José Luis Bonet, President of the Chamber of Commerce of Spain.