Opinions & Interviews

Opinion: Belarus should retain flagship companies

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MINSK, 5 February (BelTA) – It is important to retain and promote flagship manufacturing companies in Belarus, delegate of the Belarusian People’s Congress, MTZ Director General Vitaly Vovk said in an interview with BelTA.

“Being one of the country’s biggest manufacturers, we are interested in preserving flagship companies. Indeed, as the president said, we did not create them, therefore we do not have the right to destroy them. And this is the best response to calls for division or sale of the country’s most important assets”, Vitaly Vovk said.

The format of the Belarusian People’s Congress is not new - it is a policy-making event that takes stock of the previous five-year plan and sets goals for the next five years. “Traditionally, we expect a keynote address of the head of state, which will thrash out the country’s development plans,” the director general emphasized.

In his opinion, it is important to decide on measures to promote agriculture, to set out guidelines for banks to support the real sector of the economy and to offer preferences for exporters, and to outline a strategy to increase presence in foreign markets.

“We want our voice to be heard. After all, this is the voice of not only 25,000 people working in the MTZ Holding Company, but also of all our partner companies. This is at least 350 small and medium-sized Belarusian companies, more than 200 in the Russian Federation, over 100 in the far abroad,” Vitaly Vovk said. “These are the enterprises that sell component parts and other products to MTZ. In other words, when Minsk Tractor Works is doing well, these and some other companies are also doing well. Stable operation of these companies benefits not only their employees, but also employees’ families.

The director general noted that the situation at mechanical engineering companies mirrors the state of affairs in the economy. “If we say that these are flagship companies, we need to keep these companies up and running. It is not our invention – this is practiced all over the world. We want to reach out to those who have not realized it yet: when MTZ is in growth mode, many others can benefit from it. We face a lot of criticism for being a state-owned enterprise and receiving subsidies all the time. However, the most important thing that the government gives us is the opportunity to work at our effective and successful plant,” Vitaly Vovk said.

Talking about proposals for the Belarusian People’s Congress, he said that these proposals were put forward at the discussion platforms that were attended by municipal authorities, members of the House of Representatives, MTZ employees.

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