MOGILEV, 29 March (BelTA) - The Mogilev Office of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry hosted a meeting of representatives of privately-held and state-owned enterprises with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of India to Belarus Alok Ranjan Jha. The participants presented their enterprises, spoke about the investment potential of the region, discussed the possibilities of cooperation between Mogilev Oblast and India in various fields, BelTA has learned.
The economic and investment potential of the region was presented by Mogilev Oblast Vice Governor Ruslan Strakhar. He stressed that trade is one of the most important areas of cooperation. "Therefore, we invited private business of Mogilev Oblast, state-owned companies that are interested in cooperation with India. We are living through difficult times, relations between countries and trade relations are changing before our eyes, agreements are collapsing, sometimes contrary to economic interests. Our country has always honored the agreements. Quality has become out signature mark," he said. “During this period, we especially appreciate the countries that are ready to continue working with us. Together we will be able to build new ties and become stronger economically. This is an important step towards the development of relations between Belarus and India."
The meeting was attended by representatives of seven enterprises of Mogilev Oblast. Among them was Marina Yurevich, a specialist in foreign trade of the Lenta company, the largest manufacturer of textile haberdashery in Belarus. "We are now focusing on the market of the Russian Federation since buyers from abroad are having difficulty transferring funds due to the sanctions. Russia is increasing the order intake, which is good for us," she said. “The products of our company are in demand in the markets of the EAEU countries. We supply our products to the Baltic states, Poland, Germany, Hungary and Israel." As Marina Yurevich noted, Mogilev-based Lenta is looking for new markets. The meeting with the Ambassador of India is an important step in establishing new contacts.
Another participant of the meeting was Yuri Shlyamnev, Deputy Director for Commercial Affairs at the Newsprint Plant. The company is interested in supplying its products to the Indian market. Andrei Yartsev, Head of the Mogilev FEZ Administration, spoke about the possibilities of the free economic zone, how to become a resident and what preferences investors get as they they set up their production facilities in the Mogilev FEZ.
The issues were also raised during the discussion. Tanning enterprises of the region, both privately and state-owned, faced problems in logistics. They buy dyes and vegetable tannins from India. The sanctions have disrupted logistics chains. It has become almost impossible to deliver these substances in large volumes. The Indian ambassador noted that India did not set up any obstacles to the supply of chemicals and suggested working out the ways together with other countries to deliver them to Belarus.
Summing up, Ruslan Strakhar said that such a dialogue aroused a keen interest among manufacturers of Mogilev Oblast. "India is one of the promising markets for our enterprises. We are interested in supplying machine-building equipment and timber processing products there. We actively discussed the possibility of supplying our newsprint to the Indian market. India is one of the largest consumers of these products in the world, he stressed. “In addition, India is a major supplier of chemical goods and products, especially dyes, which are in demand in light industry. A number of Belarusian enterprises are interested in importing these substances. The question of logistics remains open, on which we will work in the near future. It is important that both sides are ready to work together on new logistics chains."
Following the meeting, all the proposals will be put together and sent to the ambassador to help establish new contacts for the business of both Mogilev Oblast and India.
