Over 120 entrepreneurs from Moldova, Belarus bring together in Minsk

Chisinau, 11 December /MOLDPRES/ - Over 120 economic agents from Moldova and Belarus participated in a Moldovan-Belarusian business forum, held in Minsk today. Prime Minister Pavel Filip and Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Mikhail Rusiy welcomed the participants in the meeting, the government’s communication and protocol department has reported.      

In his speech, Pavel Filip stressed that Belarus was among the main trade partners of Moldova, ranking ninth. The commercial exchanges between the two countries increased by over ten per cent in January-September 2017 and are to amount to 200 million dollars till the end of this year. At present, more than 80 companies with Belarusian capital work in Moldova. “Belarus is a true friend of Moldova and when we faced difficulties, Belarus gave us a helping hand, including in the economic sector,” Pavel Filip said.   

At the same time, the Moldovan prime minister noted that the business forum represented an efficient platform of commercial and economic cooperation, which will facilitate the initiation of new joint projects. The PM encouraged entrepreneurs to establish direct contacts and new partnerships.   

Pavel Filip said that Moldova provided a string of advantages to business people, including possibility to export goods, both to the West and the East. Moldova has signed free trade agreements with the European Union, countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Central European Free Trade Agreement, Turkey and the one with China will be signed soon.     

The prime minister stressed that the Moldovan cabinet’s work was focused on the country’s economic development, enhancing the national economy’s competitiveness, which will lead to the improvement of the citizens’ living standards. In the context, Filip highlighted the cut in the number of permissive acts from more than 400 to 149, which could be got through the single window. At the same time, the number of institutions with control duties was reduced, the system of state controls was reformed and the procedure of economic agents unveiling reports was simplified. Also, the reform on the diminution of pressure and abuses of control bodies on the business environment is to be carried out. “The task of the authorities is to identify the problems of the business environment, to destroy the current obstacles and build linking bridges,” the Moldovan prime minister said.      

For his part, Deputy prime Minister of Belarus Mikhail Rusiy said that a common goal of the Moldovan and Belarusian governments was to increase the trade exchanges between the two countries. “This means new jobs and larger collections to the state budget to solve social problems. We see a reliable partner in the Chisinau authorities, as well as in the business environment from Moldova,” the Belarusian deputy prime minister said.    

The forum was followed by a string of bilateral meetings between economic agents from the two countries. Six Moldovan-Belarusian business forums took place in 2016-2017.