MINSK, 31 May (BelTA) - Representatives of African states outlined the promising areas of cooperation with Belarus at the second Belarusian-African Economic Forum in Minsk, BelTA has learned.
The opportunities of African countries and the place that Belarus can take in their markets were discussed at the panel discussion of the forum. Uganda's Ambassador to Russia and concurrently to Belarus Johnson Agara Olwa said that his country has enough arable land to feed the whole world. They cover 65% of Uganda's territory. Here, he said, are the opportunities for the development of livestock and agriculture. "Thanks to the strong ties between our countries, we have something to discuss. We need to increase productivity on our lands. We have a lot of vacant land, and we need to manufacture more products there, improve the quality of what we will grow," the diplomat said.
Uganda is rich in minerals and produces gas and oil. "We want to refine oil, not just export it crude. Since Belarus is an exporter of petroleum products, we can cooperate in this area,” Ambassador Johnson Agara Olwa believes. "We can start working right now."
Uganda also intends to start developing residential infrastructure and building hotels for tourism. Belarusian partners could help with this, he said.
Other promising areas include information and communication technologies and education. The latter gets special attention in Uganda. The country is ready not only to send its students to Belarus but also to open a Belarusian university. "Why shouldn't Belarus open a university in Africa?" the diplomat asked.
Ethiopian Ambassador to Russia and concurrently to Belarus Alemayehu Tegenu Aargau regretfully stated during the discussion that Africa is now on the sidelines of international trade. It accounts for up no more than 3% of the entire economy, so countries want to diversify their trade. “Belarus and Ethiopia have many prospects for cooperation, The business communities of our countries could boost mutual trade. At present, its level is rather low,” the ambassador noted.
Just like his colleague from Uganda, Ambassador Alemayehu Tegenu Aargau sees great prospects for cooperation in agriculture. This is not surprising, as agriculture is the key economic sector of many African countries.
Namibia also views Belarus as a promising partner for expanding economic, trade, and investment cooperation. Ambassador of Namibia to Belarus Clemens Handuukeme Kashuupulwa proposed Belarus to cooperate in the mining industry, the energy sector, manufacturing, agriculture, and even the fishing industry. Namibia is keen to develop such areas as education, healthcare, tourism, transport, and logistics. This country is rich in mineral resources.
Representatives of Kenya also took interest in Belarusian farm machinery. Kenya produces similar machinery, which is why it focuses on cooperation in manufacturing. Agriculture is seen as another promising area for the Belarusian-Kenyan cooperation, Deputy Chief of the Nigerian Mission to Belarus Joshua Mwangi Mugodo pointed out.
The partnership between Belarus and African countries is strengthening, a representative of the embassy of Congo said. “Congo would like to advance its relations with Belarusian companies in order to improve its agricultural policy using Belarus' experience in agriculture, machinery production, education, and processing,” the diplomat noted.
According to him, representatives of Congo are already in talks with Belarusian enterprises, including the MTZ tractor maker. He invited Belarusian specialists to Congo to exchange best practices and discuss possible cooperation areas. “We would like to use Belarus' experience to develop agriculture in our country,” he added.
