Uruguay

URUGUAY has traditionally been a cattle-raising country closely linked to Europe.

Over these last ten years, meat exports have developed considerable, once Uruguay achieved the status of foot-and-mouth free country without vaccination. There has also been a dizzying progress in  forestry output, plantations, industries and exports, based on the National Forestry Plan.

There are sundry investment opportunities, both in the primary and secondary sectors.

The purpose of this report is to let potential investors know about the exceptional advantages and opportunities offered by Uruguay in this field.

These advantages are not restricted to what nature so generously offers; they also include a highly structured investment policy that foresees an attractive package of incentives; the excellent qualifications of Uruguayan manpower and the high standard of living that prevails in Uruguay, where foreigners, always, feel very much at home.

URUGUAY The Republic of Uruguay is located to the south of Latin America, bordering with Argentina on the west and with Brazil on the northeast. It has approximately 500 km of coastline on the Río de la Plata and the Atlantic Ocean. It has a surface area of 176.215 km.2 (i.e. 18 million hectares) and 86.6% of it may be used for agricultural, cattle-raising and forestry activities. Most of its territory is formed by plains with low hills, irrigated by a vast network of rivers and streams, where there are also abundant aquifers in the subsoil.The quality of its lands should be highlighted: deep fertile soilsabound and foster a cover that is rich in productive grasses where livestock thrive.It has a temperate climate, benefiting from the influence of the sea in the southern areas and enjoying an average rainfall of 1.110 millimeters and mean temperatures ranging from 6 to 32 degrees Celsius. Natural phenomena such as earthquakes, tornados, snow and the like are unknown in Uruguay.The population of Uruguay amounts to 3,130,500 inhabitants, mainly of European origin (people of African and Indigenous origin account for less than 1% of the total), with a literacy rate of over 95%, and with the greatest share of university graduates and students of the entire hemisphere.It boasts a highly skilled workforce at a relatively low cost.
According to UN data, Uruguay has the best HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX of South America, this indicator takes into account per capita income, life expectancy at birth (at 72 years, this is the highest in Latin America) and education (the highest literacy rate of   the Mercosur countries).INFRASTRUCTURE In addition to the port of Montevideo on the Río de la Plata, there are 3 others on the Uruguay River, -(Paysandú, Fray Bentos and Nueva Palmira)- and another on the Atlantic Ocean, - (La Paloma) -, where a special port for wood chips will be built.Except for the port at Paysandú, all the others can harbor large-draft ships.
Uruguay also has 17,000 km of highways and roads, benefiting from a terrain that features mostly soft hills and plains.The extensive road network connects all corners of the country, and there are 4 highways linking it to Brazil and 3 international bridges to Argentina. Moreover, there is a project to build a fourth bridge between Buenos Aires and Colonia.There are also 3,000 km of railway tracks converging towards Montevideo harbor.