Rising in the east: International firms are investing billions in eastern North Carolina.

• Position: SPONSORED SECTION: REGIONAL REPORT: FASTERN SOUTH CAROLINA

The 41 counties of eastern North Carolina's Coastal Plain are a diverse region of rich agricultural history, aerospace and military sectors, medical and pharmaceutical collaborations, and 301 miles of oceanfront. Coastline tourism is a billion-dollar industry. Interstate highways, ports and upgraded railways provide access to the rest of the country and the world. A higher education system of universities and community colleges encourages a trained workforce, and residential options range from farmland to small towns to larger cities. Those ingredients are making eastern N.C. an emerging player in a global economy and a preferred location for international business.

North Carolina's Southeast, a regional economic development partnership based in Elizabethtown, counts 65 different foreign-owned businesses representing 23 countries in its 18-county area. Japan, Germany, England and Ireland lead a segment that accounted for a total announced investment of $4.2 billion in fiscal year 2016. Manufacturing, biotechnology, advanced textiles, construction, and aerospace and defense are among fields in a labor force of 742,000, according to the partnership.

"I think one of our assets in the region is highway connectivity, which has helped us get a lot of FDI (foreign direct investment) activity. For a lot of the companies, the seaport in Wilmington is a driving factor," says Ryan Regan, marketing project manager for North Carolina's Southeast. "There are some very tangible assets in our region that work for us versus other places in the U.S. We market our access to the military, in that about 18,000 people exit the military every year, and that's a huge asset to our workforce capabilities. The military is well-trained, they're disciplined and they're familiar with our area. That's something of interest to international companies that don't have that asset in their own countries."

Regan cites a Canadian firm interested in an N.C. location to sell its military-related product. He's also working with a Mexican company in the agribusiness industry. "They provide products that are used by animal processing companies. They have a major customer in the Southeast region," Regan says. "They cold-called us, sent us an email, and made a visit here. They are interested in the access to 1-95, whereas the port is an asset for the gentlemen from Canada."

Organizations such as the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, Pitt County Committee of 100 Inc. and other statewide development commissions help secure leads and recruit clients.

"It's been a business area for some time, but we're about the business of changing people's perception. People in the Piedmont think the east is a nice, agricultural area you drive through to get to the beach," says John Chaffee, president and CEO of the NCEast Alliance in Greenville. "We had the recession in '08 and '09 when we were involved in textiles, tobacco and apparel, but we have a sizable pharmaceutical area, and we've been able to grow on that and bring in the supply chain. About 40 to 50% of our firms that we generate are foreign-based firms. We concentrate on making that pitch."

Enterprises from China, Australia, South Africa and other global points are recent additions to the landscape, with more on the way. "We have several new foreign firms that have announced investments or new facilities in eastern...