MINSK, 22 February (BelTA) – Belarus’ IT export rose by almost a third in 2021, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said in an interview with the Lithuanian newspaper Vakaro Zinios, BelTA has learned.
"After the events of 2020 in Belarus, the Lithuanian authorities called on Belarusian business to relocate to Lithuania. Basically, this call was mostly addressed to the IT sector and promised some particularly attractive conditions for it. Perhaps some companies relocated there. I do not rule this out. Belarus is an open country. On the other hand, in 2021 the Belarusian IT sector welcomed more than 100 new companies. They registered with the Hi-Tech Park. Belarus’ IT export increased by almost a third. So, some companies left, some came back, including from other countries," said Roman Golovchenko.
As for Lithuanian business in Belarus, the prime minister noted that it feels great here. "We have a total of 6,500 enterprises with foreign investments, of which 545 are Lithuanian. This accounts for 8.4% of the total. This figure has been practically the same for about a decade,” Roman Golovchenko noted. “As for foreign investments from Lithuania to Belarus, in January-September last year they amounted to $195 million. The share of Lithuanian investments (in the total volume of foreign investments) in our country increased in the past year: from 2.7% in 2020 to 2.9% in 2021.”