Felix Abt
Encyclopedia
Felix Abt "a well-known North Korean affairs specialist"(Yonhap
), is considered a prime reference point on investment and business issues in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Abt is one of the first foreign business pioneers in North Korea
where he was living from 2002 to 2009 and developing and operating various businesses.
In addition, he was co-founder and school director of the Pyongyang Business School where he was involved in capacity building
related to business administration for senior executives of North Korean government agencies and enterprises.
He has been featured and interviewed by numerous media, including CNN, FOXNews, ABC BBC, Le Monde, Handelsblatt, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, AFP, Businessweek, The Financial Times and Bloomberg and has been giving advice to business associations
Yonhap
Yonhap News Agency is South Korea's largest news agency. It is a publicly-funded company, and based in Seoul, South Korea. Yonhap supplies domestic, foreign news and other information to newspaper, TV broadcast and other media in South Korea.-History:...
), is considered a prime reference point on investment and business issues in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Abt is one of the first foreign business pioneers in North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
where he was living from 2002 to 2009 and developing and operating various businesses.
In addition, he was co-founder and school director of the Pyongyang Business School where he was involved in capacity building
Capacity building
Capacity building also referred to as capacity development is a conceptual approach to development that focuses on understanding the obstacles that inhibit people, governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations from realizing their developmental goals while enhancing...
related to business administration for senior executives of North Korean government agencies and enterprises.
He has been featured and interviewed by numerous media, including CNN, FOXNews, ABC BBC, Le Monde, Handelsblatt, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, AFP, Businessweek, The Financial Times and Bloomberg and has been giving advice to business associations
Career
Before he rejoined the ABB Group in 2002 and moved to North Korea Felix Abt had been working from 1990 for various companies in various countries and regions such as Vietnam, the Middle East and Africa. He has since left Pyongyang for Vietnam and is no longer actively involved in North Korean issues.North Korea
- In 2002 Felix Abt was appointed resident Group Representative in North Korea by the Swiss-Swedish ABB Group, a global leader in electrical power and automationAutomationAutomation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization...
technologies. On May 19, 2003 he signed a memorandum of understandingMemorandum of understandingA memorandum of understanding is a document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action. It is often used in cases where parties either do not imply a legal commitment or in...
on the implementationImplementationImplementation is the realization of an application, or execution of a plan, idea, model, design, specification, standard, algorithm, or policy.-Computer Science:...
of a large "high-tension power grid" project by ABB with North Korea's Ministry of Power and Coal Industries, in presence of the Swiss foreign minister, the Swedish ambassador to the DPRK, and the Minister of Power and Coal Industries, "in an effort to solve North Korea's serious problems in the power sector, highlighted by its worn-out generation and transmission facilities" (Yonhap) - At the end of 2003 he became an agent of several multinational corporations in selected business fields such as infrastructure (ABB), mining (SandvikSandvikSandvik is a Swedish company founded in 1862 by Göran Fredrik Göransson in Sandviken. It is a high-technology engineering group and a world-leader in tooling, stainless steel alloys and materials technology, mining and construction...
) and texiles (DystarDystarDyStar Colours Deutschland GmbH is a leading provider of products and services for the textile and leather industry. [The company combines the textile dye businesses of the former dye producers Bayer, Hoechst, BASF, ICI/Zeneca, Mitsubishi and Mitsui with the auxiliary activities of Boehme and...
) on whose behalf he realized multi-million USD sales. - Simultaneously, Felix Abt acted from October 2005 to February 2009 as managing director of the Pyongsu Joint Venture CompanyPyongsu Joint Venture CompanyPyongsu Joint Venture Company, Ltd is a Pharmaceutical company jointly founded in Pyongyang, DPRK .-Founders & Shareholders:*Pyongyang Pharmaceutical Company*Ministry of Public Health...
, the first foreign-invested joint venture in the pharmaceutical field. During this period it became the first North Korean pharmaceutical factory to reach international quality standard (called Good Manufacturing PracticeGood Manufacturing Practice"Good manufacturing practice" or "GMP" are practices and the systems required to be adapted in pharmaceutical manufacturing, quality control, quality system covering the manufacture and testing of pharmaceuticals or drugs including active pharmaceutical ingredients, diagnostics, foods,...
or GMP) certified by the World Health Organisation and the first North Korean company to win contracts against international competitors. It also set up its own pharmacy chain in the country. - Abt was initiatorInitiatorAn initiator can refer to:* A person that takes an initiative in making something happen.* Modulated neutron initiator, a neutron source used in some nuclear weapons...
, co-founder and first president of the European Business Association (EBA) in Pyongyang, set up on April 28, 2005, which is a de facto European Chamber of CommerceChamber of commerceA chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
. Among other things it has been organising the participation of European companies at trade fairs in North Korea and has been hosting various visiting delegations such as members from the European UnionEuropean UnionThe European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
parliament and EU ambassadors to the DPRK. As EBA's president Abt was strongly lobbyingLobbyingLobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
against economic sanctionsEconomic sanctionsEconomic sanctions are domestic penalties applied by one country on another for a variety of reasons. Economic sanctions include, but are not limited to, tariffs, trade barriers, import duties, and import or export quotas...
by Western powers hurting legitimate foreign business activities in North Korea. - Concurrently, Felix Abt was co-initiatorInitiatorAn initiator can refer to:* A person that takes an initiative in making something happen.* Modulated neutron initiator, a neutron source used in some nuclear weapons...
, co-sponsor and the school director of the Pyongyang Business School which has been organising regular cycles of postgraduate seminars on strategic managementStrategic managementStrategic management is a field that deals with the major intended and emergent initiatives taken by general managers on behalf of owners, involving utilization of resources, to enhance the performance of firms in their external environments...
and business administration for senior executive officerExecutive officerAn executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
s of North Korean ministries and enterprises from 2004. - Felix Abt was a co-founder and an investor of the first foreign-invested software joint ventureJoint ventureA joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
by the name of Nosotek, established in 2007. - Abt set up an online art galleryOnline art galleryAn online version of a contemporary art gallery.- Purpose and Type of Online Art Galleries :An online art gallery refers to a website that display artworks. Usually, the online gallery is run as a business, with the purpose of displaying the artwork being to promote it to potential buyers...
introducing North Korean painters and promoting North Korean fine artFine artFine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
in 2008.