In the coming years, the Government of Flanders will expand its representation , by investing more in diplomats and diplomatic posts. Within the European Union, Flanders already has one of its representatives. On 1 May of this year, Matthias De Moor took office as General Representative of Flanders to the European Union. His main task is to place Flanders’s interests and priorities on the agenda of the European institutions, in the first place the Council of the European Union, and through intra-Belgian coordination.
Since 1 May 2022, Matthias De Moor officially heads the Delegation of Flanders to the European Union, which represents the interests of the Government of Flanders to the EU. Each member state of the European Union has so-called ‘Permanent Representations’, located in Brussels, defending the interests of their member state. The Delegation of Flanders to the European Union is part of the Permanent Representation of Belgium. As General Representative of Flanders, De Moor is assisted by some twenty policy officials of the Government of Flanders, to ensure that Flanders’ input is maximised.