Business news

MINSK, 18 August (BelTA) – Belarus and China intend to implement about 30 joint research and development projects in 2016-2017, BelTA learned from Chairman of the State Science and Technology Committee of Belarus Alexander Shumilin before the session of the Belarusian-Chinese intergovernmental committee on cooperation on 18 August.

The official said that Belarus and China intend to implement 28 joint research projects and research and development ones in 2016-2017. The list was approved as a result of the first session of the commission on scientific and technical cooperation of the Belarusian-Chinese intergovernmental committee on cooperation that took place in Minsk and Brest in June 2016. “Today we are implementing projects worth $1.6 million. The sum of the new projects will be much larger. Planned direct financing already exceeds $5 million,” said Alexander Shumilin.

The official underlined that the number of joint projects had increased by 40%. “The fact confirms the desire of Chinese and Belarusian scientists to work together and implement joint projects. There is another important novelty. For the first time the Science and Technology Ministry of China is considering directly financing these projects. In the past funding was made available using different channels,” remarked Alexander Shumilin.

The projects target nanotechnologies, mechanical engineering, ways to strengthen various metals, creation of new crops, healthcare, ways to protect sea vessels from sea weeds. “There is no sea in Belarus but we have a technology to protect vessels from algae,” explained the Chairman of the State Science and Technology Committee of Belarus.

At present the State Science and Technology Committee of Belarus and the Science and Technology Ministry of China are working on the legal base concerning the financing of joint R&D projects. A memorandum on cooperation in the joint financing of Chinese-Belarusian scientific projects and R&D ones may be signed soon.