NEXT year's Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup will benefit businesses north of the Border for a generation, Alex Salmond has predicted.
Speaking at the the Scottish Chambers of Commerce annual dinner in Glasgow last night, the First Minister said the two events would provide a "golden economic legacy" alongside long-term sporting benefits.
He unveiled plans for a government summit of local chambers of commerce to help businesses cash in.
The First Minister said the events had already created thousands of jobs and secured millions of pounds of investment, but told the audience of business leaders: "The message I want to get across is that 2014 should be an opportunity for the next generation, not the next 12 months.
"The eyes of the world will be on Scotland next year to a greater extent than they have been in decades."
He spoke a day after the UK and Scottish Governments announced a major business conference in Glasgow on the eve of next year's Games designed to showcase British firms to the rest of the world.
The Games have generated £300million of contracts, with more than 80% of the value going to firms based in Scotland, and are expected to create 35,000 jobs. The Ryder Cup at Gleneagles is expected to create a further 5000 jobs.
Commonwealth Games Minister Shona Robison has visited a project in Colombo funded by Scottish churches and working with women with mental health issues.
Ms Robison, in Sri Lanka for the Commonwealth Business Forum, saw how Netherlee Cottage, supported by Netherlee Parish Church and Fenwick Parish Church in Glasgow, helps the women be rehabilitated into a society which traditionally excludes them from family and friends.
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