MINSK, 20 January (BelTA) - Belarus will help Russia's Tyva with the construction of a dairy farm, the head of the Republic of Tuva of the Russian Federation Vladislav Khovalyg told the media following a meeting with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko in Minsk on 20 January, BelTA has learned.
The head of the Russian region noted that the delegation that came to Belarus has a very extensive program, and it is still possible that more agreements will be reached.
"We have agreed on the project to build a dairy farm for least 200 cattle in Tyva," Vladislav Khovalyg said.
According to him, this farm will be fitted out, among other things, with equipment produced in Belarus and will have Belarusian cattle. The project is planned to be implemented within a year, and then this experience can be scaled up.
Vladislav Khovalyg explained that Tyva is self-sufficient in meat but does not cover its needs for milk. "Therefore, we would like Belarus to help us with dairy farms, with equipment. Our goal is to satisfy the local demand for milk and dairy products by own forces. You have a lot of experience in this regard," he said.
There are opportunities for cooperation in other areas. The mining industry requires a variety of quarry equipment. "Our mining enterprises are located in the taiga part of our republic. Accordingly, we need to build roads and accordingly we need road equipment. Perhaps, together with investors, we will consider involving Belarusian companies in the construction of a mining and processing plant," Vladislav Khovalyg said.
“We will also consider cooperation with Belarus in mechanical engineering, other industries as well. We are now at the start of a so-called construction boom. There is a shortage of workers, builders, other specialists. We would also like to consider the issue of attracting Belarusian construction workers to build various facilities,” the head of the Russian region said.
According to First Deputy Agriculture and Food Minister Igor Brylo, Belarus prioritizes cooperation with any Russian region, including the Republic of Tyva. “Last year we sold more than $4.5 billion worth of our agricultural products to the Russian Federation. The growth made up 11%. Belarus supplied over $100 million worth of agricultural products to the Siberian Federal District, including Tyva,” he said.
According to him, the Russian delegation was particularly interested in developing cooperation in the construction of small dairy farms (about 200 cows). “We have ready project documentation. We are ready to equip such farms with Belarusian milking and refrigerating equipment and livestock and keep developing cooperation,” the first deputy minister said.
Belarus also expressed readiness to welcome any delegation from the Republic of Tyva at higher educational establishments of the agricultural sector in order to train and retrain specialists able to work under new conditions of cattle breeding production. Last year, even in spite of the pandemic, about 250 specialists and managers from 15 regions of Russia were trained in Belarus.
The head of the Russian region was invited to visit Belarus again in June and attend a specialized exhibition Belagro to see the agro-industrial potential of Belarus.
