Opinions & Interviews

GOMEL, 13 September (BelTA) – The Belarusian-Finnish Forum will help unlock the potential of mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries, Chairman of the Gomel Oblast Executive Committee Vladimir Dvornik said when speaking at the opening of the forum, BelTA has learned.

Vladimir Dvornik noted that the bilateral cooperation between Belarus and Finland is mutually beneficial and has great potential. “The Belarusian-Finnish Forum will help unlock this potential. The forum is designed to demonstrate the capabilities of the leading manufacturers, to strengthen the image of our enterprises on foreign markets and to showcase best practices,” he said.

The first economic forum took place in Minsk in 2008; two years later it was hosted by Helsinki. Back then the organizers decided to move the ‘center of gravity’ to regions. Therefore, the third and fourth forums were held in Grodno and Turku, the historical center of Finland. This year the host city is Gomel. Vladimir Dvornik emphasized that this is no coincidence, because enterprises of Gomel Oblast generate a fifth part of the two countries’ trade, with exports accounting for nearly 65% of exports. Among major exporters there are not only large state-owned enterprises, but also private companies. “Such events is, on the one hand, a meeting place for business and government, and on the other is a kind of institute of integration of the region into the world economy,” Chairman of the Gomel Oblast Executive Committee.

The head of the region also assured the participants of the forum that the Belarusian and Finnish entrepreneurs can always count on the support of the authorities in implementing the plans.

At the plenary session of the Belarusian-Finnish Forum the parties laid out the economic potential of the two countries, discussed the macroeconomic issues, and prospects of cooperation between the two states.

Themed workshops will focus on cooperation in various sectors, including energy industry, recycling of household and industrial waste, agriculture, IT. The guests will also visit a number of Gomel companies, including Milkavita, Gomselmash, Gomeldrev and also the National Research Center of Radiation Medicine and Human Ecology, and the Gomel Palace and Park Ensemble