MINSK, 21 December (BelTA) – One of the key tasks of the Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade Ministry will be to make sure retailers offer a broad choice of quality Belarusian products at an adequate price, BelTA learned from the newly appointed Belarusian Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade Minister Aleksei Bogdanov on 21 December.
Aleksei Bogdanov has been working as a deputy agriculture and food minister up till now. He oversaw foreign economic activities, the export of Belarusian food, the processing industry, and the availability of goods on the domestic market. “I've always looked at the domestic market from the point of view of the manufacturer – how to ensure profitable manufacturing, the output of products per one tonne of raw materials, how to expand the product choice, promote the products onto the domestic market and foreign ones, how to ensure the products' presence on shop shelves, and the marketing of product promotion. As the antimonopoly regulation and trade minister I will have to look at the world from another side,” he remarked.
The official said: “End consumers are simple people. In the process of appointing me the president said it is important to secure interests of ordinary people. In order to offer a broad choice of quality Belarusian products at adequate prices to ordinary Belarusians in this complicated time of economic and political turbulence in the world.”
Aleksei Bogdanov pointed out that prices are rising on the global scale: “We cannot stop them but it is our duty to regulate pricing on the domestic market and we will keep an eye on it.” He continued: “We have to understand that there is a consumer demand ceiling. If the price is too high, people will be unable to buy it. If they can afford it, they will buy the product much less often and the manufacturer will suffer. This is why it is necessary to find a balance of interests. Manufacturers need to operate in the black and have to be able to invest in their enterprises and develop the processing industry. Retailers need to earn money and be able to invest, too. For instance, in new retail outlets and so on. And most importantly consumers need to be able to buy these products,” the Belarusian antimonopoly regulation and trade minister said.
According to Aleksei Bogdanov, oversight over the observance of antimonopoly regulations will not be relaxed. “We have very many state monopolies and natural ones. It is necessary to prevent violations and damage to interests of the end consumers – ordinary Belarusians,” he noted.
