The Group
GICAT, a trade group founded in 1978, has nearly 480 members: major groups, ETIs, SMEs and since the creation of its start-up gas pedal GENERATE in 2017, 70 young start-ups.
Its members, the French defense and security industry, cover a broad spectrum of industrial, research, service and consulting activities for national and international military and civilian components.
GICAT, the strength of our territories internationally
A word from the President – Emmanuel Levacher
It is with honor and responsibility that I have been elected president of GICAT by the Board of Directors. First and foremost, I would like to warmly thank Nicolas Chamussy for his deep commitment to our industry. His actions have helped to strengthen the cohesion and influence of the Group during a challenging period for our industry.
As I take up my duties, I am fully committed to the strategic momentum that has been built up. Our ecosystem faces an uncertain political and budgetary environment, which requires clarity, high standards, and pragmatism. More than ever, we must defend the strength of our industrial and technological base for land and air-land defense, and ensure its ability to meet the needs of both the armed forces and security actors.
With my international background, I understand how much our industry draws its strength from the richness of its territories and expertise: large groups, mid-sized companies, SMEs, and start-ups that innovate, produce, train, and export. With more than 480 members, GICAT is now a unique community capable of combining technological excellence, responsiveness, and international ambition.
We will continue to support this momentum by leveraging major global events such as EUROSATORY and ExpoDefensa, as well as the numerous French pavilions that showcase our expertise around the world.
Our role is clear: to support, unite, and promote a sector that is essential to national sovereignty, while strengthening its presence and competitiveness on the international stage.
I am convinced that it is collectively that we will continue to fly the flag for our industry, serving France's defense, security, and strategic interests.
Emmanuel Levacher
Chairman of GICAT
Key indicators
The land and air-land sector in figures
Every year, GICAT updates the key figures for the Defense & Security industry, based on a study carried out by the Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique (FRS) and Affinity Data. These data provide a overview of major industry trends.
In 2023, the GICAT membership network will comprise 79 % from SMEs, 19 % from SMBs and 2 % from large groups. These 480 companies generate total sales of 8.9 billion eurosof which 90 % in Defense and 10 % in Security (compared with 8.34 % in 2022). These sales can be broken down as follows 31 % exports and 69 % on the national market. The Land Defence and Security sector represents a total of 50,000 jobs throughout the country.
The economic impact of the defense industry
In addition to its importance for the security and sovereignty of the French state, the defense industry also generatessignificant economic and social benefits for the whole country. The three groups representing the French defense industry - GICAN, GICAT and GIFAS - grouped together within CIDEF, have been able to quantify this impact for the year 2021.
Visit sales for the defense industry amounted to 32.2 billion in 2021. For the French government and local authorities, this activity generates 5.8 billion in tax revenues. Last but not least, the strong presence of the defense industry is reflected in the location of 110,000 direct jobs across the whole of France, to which should be added 115,000 indirect jobs.