Opinions & Interviews

 LUXEMBOURG, 27 October (BelTA) - Belarus is a business-friendly country, Belarus Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov said at the opening session of the Belarusian-European investment forum headlined “Belarus. Invest in Tomorrow” in Luxembourg, BelTA has learned.

“Belarus is distinguished by the ease of doing business. We have vaulted from the 115th place in the Doing Business list of 180 countries to the 37th position. All these years Belarus has been among the most active reformers. There is no position where we would not have progressed. Our strategy is ambitious: to place in the top 30 countries with favorable investment climate,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

Addressing the businessmen, the prime minister proposed a free-format communication, without long speeches. “We are here to show you Belarus for what it is, to dispel the stereotypes, to provide opportunities for your projects and the path to the huge common market of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

He noted that a large government delegation came to Luxembourg. “We are at your disposal. We are ready to answer all questions and make fast decisions on the spot. Bloomberg, Standard & Poor's, Moody's and the IMF will give you dry figures. Today I want to talk about the possibilities for your companies, the safeguards for your business, joint projects and return on your investment. You will find all these in Belarus,” the prime minister said.

Andrei Kobyakov noted that the legislation in Belarus is on par with the European one. It guarantees the rights of the investor. We permit the use of the British, Swiss, American or any other law and arbitration, he noted.

He stressed that the tax on profits for corporations is 18% in Belarus, which is one of the lowest in Europe. High-tech companies are almost entirely exempt from taxes.

“We have an excellent infrastructure, a powerful and reliable energy system. In terms of the infrastructure quality we are 65th in the world out of 155 countries. These are the World Bank’s figures that attest to the infrastructure viability of Belarus,” the Belarusian head of government said.

The prime minister stressed that Belarus is the geographical center of Europe, a gateway to the huge economic union with Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

In addition, Belarus is growing into the largest logistics hub in Central and Eastern Europe, which is a serious competitive advantage in the global world.

“We have a competitive, high-quality and inexpensive labor force. Belarus is 51st on the Human Development Index out of 187 countries. Coupled with the strong government institutions, these factors provide unique opportunities for investment in Belarus,” Andrei Kobyakov noted.

The main goal of the Belarusian-European Investment Forum is to create an effective and results-oriented, multi-level platform for establishing stable interaction between Belarusian loan and financial institutions and business entities and European partners and promote the strongest aspects of the Belarusian economy (IT, logistics) in the Western business community.

The program of the forum includes a plenary session and panel discussions. European investors will be provided with the information on the investment climate, banking system, and the liberalization of the financial legislation of Belarus.