Privacy Policy

1. Purpose of this Privacy Policy

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), a public-interest body, attaches great importance to respecting and protecting the personal data it processes in the performance of its public-interest missions.

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) undertakes to process your personal data lawfully, fairly and transparently, in accordance with the legislation in force.

Through its Privacy Policy, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) wishes to provide you with clear and comprehensive information on how your personal data is processed.

For the purposes of this document, the following terms shall mean:

·         “legislation in force”: all applicable regulations (national, European and international) on the protection of personal data relating to natural persons, including Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 (“GDPR”);

·         “personal data”: any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person;

·         “processing”: any operation or set of operations performed on personal data or sets of personal data, whether or not by automated means (collection, recording, organisation, structuring, storage, adaptation, alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure, dissemination, making available, alignment, combination, restriction, erasure or destruction);

·         “controller”: the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing;

·         “processor”: the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which processes personal data on behalf of the controller;

·         “third party”: a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or body other than the data subject, the controller, the processor and the persons authorised to process personal data under the direct authority of the controller or processor;

·         “recipient”: the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body to which personal data is disclosed, whether or not a third party;

·         “consent”: any freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous indication of the data subject’s wishes by which they, by a statement or clear affirmative action, agree to the processing of personal data relating to them;

·         “profiling”: any form of automated processing of personal data consisting of the use of such data to evaluate certain personal aspects relating to a natural person;

·         “public-interest missions of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)” / “missions”: the public-interest missions entrusted to the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) pursuant to Article 2 of the Decree of 2 April 1998 (as amended by the Decree of 1 April 2004), including:

·         the external promotion of the economic and commercial interests of companies with a place of business in the Walloon Region;

·         financial support for individual prospecting activities and studies of foreign markets;

·         the management of special programmes supporting foreign trade;

·         the search for foreign outlets for agricultural and horticultural products, including agri-food products, and the brand image of agriculture and horticulture;

·         the analysis and identification of economic and commercial opportunities in multilateral technical and financial assistance programmes, within the framework of international economic partnership;

·         the search for foreign investors;

·         the coordination of the network of economic and commercial attachés of the Walloon Region.

More generally and across all its activities, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) is also responsible for developing the international visibility and reputation of Wallonia among foreign audiences.

2. Contact details of the controller and the Data Protection Officer

2.1. Controller

The controller of your personal data is:

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), a public-interest body
Place Sainctelette 2
1080 Brussels
Belgium
No. 0267.314.479

2.2. Data Protection Officer

For any question, comment or complaint relating to your rights or to the processing of your personal data, please contact the Data Protection Officer, clearly specifying your request.

The Data Protection Officer of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may be contacted at the following address: [email protected].

3. Categories of personal data processed by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)

In carrying out its missions, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may process the following personal data concerning you:

·         Identification data: surname, first name, postal address, telephone numbers, email address, copy of identity card and/or passport (only for certain collective commercial prospecting activities), photograph (only for producing participant brochures for collective commercial prospecting activities);

·         Data relating to personal characteristics: age, gender, date and place of birth, nationality, languages spoken;

·         Financial data: payment card number, bank account number (only where financial aid is granted to companies organised as natural persons and, in certain cases, during certain collective commercial prospecting activities);

·         Professional, education and training data: title/position, employer name, curriculum vitae (in particular for carrying out an internship at the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), participating in the Explort programme or meeting the selection requirements for certain public contracts of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX));

·         Browsing data on our websites: IP addresses, dates and times of access to the websites, browser type, pages viewed;

·         Sensitive data: as a general rule, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) does not use your sensitive personal data (sexual orientation, religious or political beliefs, health, ethnic origin). However, information concerning the possible implications of your dietary requirements may be requested in the context of public relations operations and collective commercial prospecting activities;

·         Other types of data: dates and place of stay in connection with individual and collective travel abroad (commercial prospecting activities, Explort programme, etc.).

4. Sources of your personal data

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may collect personal data from the following sources:

·         You: this is the main source from which the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) collects personal data;

·         External partners: Walloon foreign trade operators, higher education institutions participating in the Explort programme, Wallonia-Brussels International, Walloon administrations and public-interest bodies, where applicable;

·         Processors: the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may receive certain personal data (contact details of company representatives) from service providers it uses as part of its foreign investment search mission;

·         Publicly accessible sources: in certain cases, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may collect personal data from publicly accessible sources (company websites, Crossroads Bank for Enterprises, etc.).

5. Purposes and legal bases for processing your personal data

5.1. Authorised legal bases

In this section, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) wishes to inform you of the purposes for which it processes your personal data and to indicate the legal bases on which, in accordance with the legislation in force, it relies to carry out such processing.

For each processing operation involving personal data, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) relies on one or more of the legal bases authorised by the legislation in force, as listed in Article 6 of the GDPR.

Depending on the context and the purposes pursued, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may therefore collect and use your personal data (i) to perform its public-interest missions and/or (ii) to ensure the proper performance of a contract you have concluded with it and/or (iii) to comply with a legal obligation to which it is subject.

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may also rely on your consent to process your personal data. In such cases, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) undertakes not to use this data for any purpose other than that for which you gave your consent.

5.2. Purposes of processing carried out by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)

The Decree of 2 April 1998 (as amended by the Decree of 1 April 2004) assigns several public-interest missions to the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), which can be grouped under the following three areas:

·         Comprehensive support for Walloon exporting companies or companies interested in international development, also including the search for new users who do not yet use the services of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX);

·         The attraction of potential foreign investors (greenfield and expansion projects) to Wallonia;

·         Across all activities, the development of Wallonia’s international visibility and reputation among foreign audiences.

All personal data processing within the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) takes place in the context of these three main missions, where applicable under joint controllership with other public bodies or with the support of public or private service providers or subcontracting institutions.

Most personal data processing carried out by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) is necessary to provide the service(s) from which you have chosen to benefit on the basis of a voluntary approach on your part.

Under no circumstances does the processing of personal data carried out by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) have a commercial dimension, in the sense of seeking or requiring financial consideration, except in the form of participation fees for certain prospecting activities.

5.3. Details of processing operations (without table)

A) Mission to support Walloon exporting companies

·         Create and update the database of client entities (personalising the relationship, identifying contact points, granting access to secure online areas).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission.
Disclosures: intranet platform; staff of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).

·         Provide personalised information on the services of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) (seminars, commercial prospecting activities, new aid schemes, etc.) and on export markets.
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; (newsletters) consent.
Disclosures: seminars; other participants.

·         Provide personalised information on the relationship (aid granted, aid in progress, etc.) between a company and the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission.

·         Enable companies to benefit from contacts within the EEN Wallonia network coordinated by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; (newsletters) consent.
Disclosures: partners of the EEN Wallonia network.

·         Offer and organise commercial prospecting activities (lists of participants and representatives, prospecting via the network of economic and commercial attachés, logistics, evaluation).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission.
Disclosures: other participants; travel agency; stand builder; organiser (and processors); Belgian Foreign Trade Agency; FPS Foreign Affairs; Royal Palace; State Security Service.

·         Grant financial aid for internationalisation (receipt of application, eligibility, payment, control, contact point).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission.
Disclosures: Office of the Supervisory Minister; Court of Audit; CIF (SPW); statutory auditor; ISO certification body; Wallonia-Brussels International; SOFINEX; FPS Economy; FPS Foreign Affairs; other regional bodies; AdN; E-wbs; DGO6; SODEXHO.

·         Explort programme – long missions (international experience).
Legal bases: submission of application = consent; completion of internship = contract; alumni network = consent.
Disclosures: FOREM; beneficiary companies.

·         Explort programme – short missions (international experience).
Legal bases: consent (approach proposed by the School).
Disclosures: partner educational institution; beneficiary companies.

·         Buy in Wallonia: enabling client companies to have a presentation page and visibility, and enabling the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) to use this page.
Legal bases: contract.
Disclosures: other platform users.

B) Mission to attract foreign investment

·         Prospect, draw up prospect lists and conduct monitoring activities.
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; (private prospectors / independent experts) contract.
Disclosures: independent experts.

·         Create and update a database of personalised contacts.
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; (private prospectors / independent experts) contract.
Disclosures: internal restricted access, including independent experts (but not private prospectors).

·         Open a foreign investment file (greenfield or expansion).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; (private prospectors / independent experts) contract.
Disclosures: Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) Business Committee; Supervisory Minister; law firm; social secretariat; Walloon administrations; accountant; real estate company; intermunicipal association; notary’s office; independent expert.

·         Annually communicate investment statistics in Wallonia.
Legal bases: public-interest mission.
Disclosures: audit firm (Ernst & Young).

·         Provide personalised information on Wallonia’s assets (seminars, PR operations, etc.).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; (newsletters) consent.
Disclosures: seminars and PR operations: other participants.

·         Enable a foreign prospect to contact Walloon companies via “Buy in Wallonia”.
Legal bases: consent.
Disclosures: the company contacted.

C) Mission to develop international visibility and reputation

·         Develop the brand ambassador network (manage/coordinate it, events, newsletter, testimonials, etc.).
Legal bases: consent.
Disclosures: Wallonia-Brussels International; other network members.

·         Communicate promotional documentation (paper or electronic mailing).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission; consent.

·         Organise events, seminars and public relations operations.
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission.
Disclosures: other participants.

·         Request video or written testimonials.
Legal bases: consent.
Disclosures: the general public (via websites or social media).

D) Other types of processing

·         Manage public procurement procedures (identify the authorised person, verify professional capacity, etc.).
Legal bases: legal obligation; public-interest mission.
Disclosures: Wallonia-Brussels International (joint contracts); European Commission; Court of Audit.

·         Manage contacts and relations with Belgian media.
Legal bases: consent.

6. Sharing your personal data

In addition to the specific disclosure cases mentioned in section “5.2. Purposes of processing carried out by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)”, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may share your personal data with other recipients. The categories of potential recipients of your personal data are detailed below.

6.1. Staff members of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)

Agents of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), both local and abroad, may receive your personal data in order to perform the tasks assigned to them. Internal measures are taken to ensure that your personal data is processed in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

In addition, in order to prevent unauthorised access to or alteration of data as far as possible, agents of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) only have access to the personal data necessary to perform their tasks.

6.2. Partners of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may share your personal data with partners, generally other public bodies, with which it collaborates in carrying out its public-interest missions, particularly in relation to the granting of certain financial aid for internationalisation or the organisation of certain commercial prospecting activities.

6.3. Processors and external service providers of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)

To perform certain tasks, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) uses external service providers who may be required to process your personal data.

These may include the technical application providers of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), which develop application solutions and may be required to process your personal data, or insurance service providers for participants in the Explort programme of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).

When your personal data is communicated to processors who carry out processing on behalf of the controller, it ensures that contractual provisions are put in place, in particular to guarantee that these processors:

·         do not use your personal data for purposes other than those specified by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) and that such data is processed in accordance with the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy;

·         have appropriate security measures in place to protect against unauthorised or unlawful processing of your personal data and against accidental loss, destruction or damage to your personal data.

6.4. Public authorities

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may be required to communicate some of your personal data in order to comply with a legal obligation imposed on it or to respond to requests from public authorities.

These may include requests from judicial authorities (courts and tribunals, police services, etc.), administrative courts (Court of Audit, Council of State) or certain administrative authorities (supervisory ministerial office, Digital Wallonia Agency, CIF, etc.).

7. Transfers of personal data to a country outside the European Economic Area (EEA)

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) has several economic and commercial representation offices abroad (“the network of economic and commercial attachés of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX)” or “the Network”), which notably carry out missions representing Wallonia internationally, providing information, monitoring and advice on foreign markets, conducting market studies, supporting prospecting activities and assisting companies in the field.

Members of the Network are placed under the direct authority of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) and process personal data in accordance with the instructions given to them.

Some of the Network’s offices are located in countries outside the EEA and it is possible that, in the context of carrying out the public-interest missions of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), transfers of personal data may take place between these offices and the various offices of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) located in Belgium.

Some countries outside the EEA are considered, by decision of the European Commission, to provide an adequate level of protection within the meaning of the legislation in force. Transfers of personal data to these countries do not require additional protective measures.

In all other cases, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) will make every effort to ensure that personal data is processed in accordance with this Privacy Policy, in particular by putting in place appropriate contractual provisions or by issuing clear and precise instructions on how personal data may be processed.

The personal data that may be concerned by these transfers is as follows:

·         surname, first name, title and contact details of natural persons taking part in individual or collective activities of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) abroad;

·         information concerning participants in the Explort programme who carry out an internship in one of the Network’s offices or in a company abroad.

8. What are your rights and how can you exercise them?

In accordance with the legislation in force, you have several rights concerning the processing of your personal data by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).

To exercise the rights listed below, please contact the Data Protection Officer of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), whose contact details are provided in section 2.2 of this Privacy Policy.

The Data Protection Officer will assess the merits of your request and determine whether it can be answered as soon as possible and, in any event, within one month of receipt of the request. If necessary, this period may be extended by two months, taking into account the complexity and number of requests.

In addition, following your request, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may need to verify your identity. This verification may require the transmission of additional data, such as a copy of your identity card.

The rights available to you are as follows:

8.1. Right of access to your personal data

You have the right to obtain information as to whether or not personal data concerning you is being processed by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX). Where personal data concerning you is being processed by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), you have the right to obtain the following information: the purposes of the processing, the categories of personal data concerned, the recipients or categories of recipients, the retention period or the criteria used to determine it, and the source of the data.

You also have the right to obtain a copy of your personal data in electronic form or, if you wish, in paper form.

8.2. Right to rectification of your personal data

You may request that your personal data be amended, corrected or deleted if you find that it is incomplete, incorrect or inaccurate.

Where applicable, this rectification will be communicated to any processors and recipients of your personal data.

8.3. Right to erasure of your personal data (right to be forgotten)

In certain cases, you have the right to request that your personal data be erased by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).

In any event, this right may not be exercised and your request will be refused where the processing is necessary to comply with a legal obligation or to perform the public-interest missions of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX).

However, if the processing is based on your consent or on a contract concluded with the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), you may request erasure where:

·         the data is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected;

·         you withdraw your consent and the processing was based on that consent;

·         your data is being processed unlawfully.

Where applicable, this erasure request will be communicated to any processors and recipients.

8.4. Right to object to the processing of your personal data

Where processing is based exclusively on the performance of a public-interest mission of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), you have the right, on grounds relating to your particular situation, to object to such processing.

However, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) may refuse your request by demonstrating compelling legitimate grounds justifying the processing.

Where applicable, your objection will be communicated to any processors and recipients.

8.5. Right to withdraw your consent

Where processing is based exclusively on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time, without prejudice to the right of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) to rely on other legal bases justifying and making such processing necessary.

8.6. Right to restriction of processing

You have the right to obtain restriction of processing in the following cases:

·         you contest the accuracy of your data;

·         you have objected to the processing of your data;

·         the processing of your data is unlawful.

If your request is justified, your personal data will be retained by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) but will no longer be used.

8.7. Right to data portability

Subject to the rights and freedoms of third parties, you have the right to receive the personal data you have provided to the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, and to request that it be transmitted to another controller where:

·         the processing is based on consent or on a contract;

·         the processing is carried out by automated means.

Please note: your request may be refused where the processing is necessary for the performance of a public-interest mission.

8.8. Right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing

You have the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, which produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you. You therefore have the right to request human intervention.

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) undertakes to ensure that you are never subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, which produces such effects.

9. Security measures

The Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) has implemented appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect the personal data it collects and processes about you. The measures used are designed to provide a level of security appropriate to the risks of the processing (destruction, loss, alteration, etc.).

The IT infrastructure of the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) is protected by various technical means, such as perimeter security services using firewalls and email filtering systems. Systems are also in place to back up information. Transactions are secured through data encryption mechanisms.

In order to prevent unauthorised access or changes as far as possible, staff members, partners and processors only have access to the data necessary to perform their tasks and process it only in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

Finally, audits aimed at testing and assessing the security measures in place are carried out regularly.

10. Retention period for your personal data

As a general rule, the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) retains your personal data for as long as necessary for the purposes of the processing for which it was collected, as well as to comply with legal retention obligations.

When your personal data is no longer of any use to the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX), it is destroyed.

11. Complaints and contact details of the supervisory authority

If you dispute a decision by the Data Protection Officer or for any other dispute concerning the processing of your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint free of charge with the competent supervisory authority:

DATA PROTECTION AUTHORITY
Rue de la Presse, 35, 1000 Brussels
Telephone: +32 (0)2 274 48 00
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://www.autoriteprotectiondonnees.be/

12. Changes to this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy may be amended at any time, in particular due to new developments in the processing carried out by the Wallonia Export & Investment Agency (AWEX) or changes to the applicable legislation. Any change to this Privacy Policy takes effect immediately. You are therefore advised to visit this page regularly.

The last update took place on 30/01/2026.