In 2017 Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel welcomed the Danish Crown Prince Couple in Stockholm to highlight future opportunities for development in the Øresund region in particular.

Last year, Denmark’s exports to Sweden amounted to nearly DKK 125 billion, while Sweden’s exports to Denmark amounted to DKK 109 billion. Both countries therefore have major interest in strengthening the cooperation.

On 16-18 September, it was the Danish Crown Prince Couple’s turn to welcome their Swedish counterparts in Copenhagen.

As part of the Swedish visit, HRH Crown Princess Victoria spoke at the DI Business Summit 2019 about the importance of the Danish-Swedish cooperation across the Sound.

“We’re here today to build on the fundament we laid in Stockholm and to take the next step in our cooperation,” HRH Crown Princess Victoria began her speech at DR Koncerthuset.

See also: Mette Frederiksen invites companies to sign climate contracts

Green Nordic solutions

Nordic inspiration in particular was a major theme in both HRH Crown Princess Victoria’s speech and in the subsequent speech by Martin Lundstedt, CEO of Volvo Group, which centred on Nordic partnerships and research.

“Most think ‘safety’ when they hear Volvo, but hopefully in the future they’ll also think climate action,” said Martin Lundstedt in his speech.

Each year, Volvo Group invests 2 billion euros in research and development. Most funding goes to collaborations with universities in the Nordic countries.

HRH Crown Princess Victoria also emphasised the importance of continuous development, even though both Denmark and Sweden are in a strong position today.

“Denmark and Sweden not only border one another - we’re also family. And just like other families, we also compete. That’s something we learn from, but first and foremost we are stronger together,” concluded the Crown Princess in her speech at the summit.

See also: DI launches new 2030-plan: We can create growth and cut Denmark’s emissions by up to 70 per cent

Small nations, big impact

The day after the DI Business Summit, the two royal couples met once again at the Swedish-Danish Business Forum in Industriens Hus.

Here, CEO of the Confederation of Danish Industry Lars Sandahl Sørensen, Chairman of DI’s sister organisation the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise Fredrik Persson, Danish Minister for Transport Benny Engelbrecht, Swedish Minister for Health and Social Affairs Lena Hallengren and CEO of Rockwool Jens Birgersson all spoke about the two countries’ future cooperation.

In the opening speech, Lars Sandahl Sørensen emphasised Denmark and Sweden’s opportunities for impact despite their small size.

“Both of us are small nations in a big world, but we both want to and can make a big difference. We have the same views when it comes to norms, values and social justice. This gives us the opportunity to develop solutions that can be used all over the world.”

On the agenda at the Swedish-Danish Business Forum were green transition, transport and infrastructure and modernisation of the healthcare sector - and throughout, the focus was on Danish-Swedish partnerships.

“We look forward to developing partnerships across the Sound to find global solutions to pressing societal issues,” said DI’s CEO.