POM Limburg and Het Belang van Limburg connect Limburgers around the world

The new professional ‘Limburgers Worldwide’ community unites Limburgers from all over the world. The LinkedIn group was set up by POM Limburg and Het Belang van Limburg, in cooperation with online expat magazine The Bulletin. Limburgers Worldwide provides daily English-language news about Limburg, targeting mainly expats and their partners, foreign students, and expatriate Limburgers.  

“In today’s economy, internationalisation is increasingly the norm,” says Tom Vandeput, Deputy for the Economy and Chairman of POM Limburg. “Companies are working with each other on an ever-bigger scale The more internationally our province profiles itself, the more favourable it will be to our investment climate and our ability to attract talent.” With the Expat Centre Limburg, POM has been focusing on internationalisation and welcoming highly educated knowledge workers or expats for some time. “Interviews with expats revealed that the flow of English-language information in our province is insufficient. We want this LinkedIn group to serve as a professional, English-language community with relevant news from Limburg.” 

Connection
The group primarily targets expats and their partners, foreign students, and other highly educated, non-native speakers who have already found their way to Limburg. “But HR managers or executives of companies that employ or want to attract highly educated foreign talent are also welcome,” says Tom Vandeput. “They can more easily connect with travelling expat partners and share interesting job opportunities via the community.” The target group also includes expatriate Limburgers who want to keep a link with their home base. “This is how we’ll create a kind of connection between Limburg ambassadors, and fuel the Limburg vibe by keeping them informed about socio-economic developments in our province. That’s why we’re investing in our international profile.”  

Quality
Limburgers Worldwide is a professional community in which POM Limburg acts as a moderator. “That way, we can monitor the quality of the content, in particular,” explains coordinator and group administrator Bahar Kavas. “We stick to information that’s relevant to the target audience. This ranges from job vacancies to economic news about Limburg, as well as community events and testimonials from expats. Everything is translated into English.” 

Antonio Rodrigues, general manager at IPTE: “I think it’s a very interesting initiative to bring together Limburg expats via LinkedIn. This way we can share our experiences, especially when the first honeymoon period is over and we have to adjust to a new environment. Moreover, as a manager in the industrial sector in Limburg, I am also closely aware of the challenges companies are facing today. Vacancies are becoming increasingly difficult to fill. Possibly Limburgers Worldwide can play a role in this, by connecting HR managers with expats.” 

Ideal partner 
POM Limburg found the ideal partner in Het Belang van Limburg. The newspaper aims to reach Limburgers around the world from the perspective of ‘Limburgers Worldwide’. Editor-in-Chief Indra Dewitte explains, “Limburger and world citizen is still one of the foundations of Het Belang van Limburg. We are proud of our roots, but that does not mean we are navel-gazers. The world is our backyard and our community does not stop at the provincial borders. You can see this clearly when big things happen in the world. Whether it’s the US elections, an attack in Lebanon or the death of Queen Elisabeth II, we always manage to tell the story through the eyes of drifting Limburgers. So now that the digital possibilities are almost endless, we want to call on Limburgers around the world to continue to follow the news from home through this new group as well as through our news app and – when it matters – to be at the wheel themselves to bring world news here.” 

Bulletin Media is also jumping on the bandwagon. The Bulletin, Belgium’s oldest English-language magazine, has long targeted expats. Editor-in-Chief Sarah Crew says, “We are delighted to join this partnership and contribute to informing internationals about what is happening in their province, region, and country. The Bulletin looks forward to promoting life in Limburg.” 

Knowledge region
With Limburgers Worldwide, POM Limburg is taking yet another step in its regional promotion policy. Tom Vandeput: “We must continue to market Limburg as a competitive and innovative knowledge region. Not only with prospective investors, but also with the foreign public within our provincial borders. Thanks to this new community, we can invest in both.”