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Mogilev Oblast-Georgia trade up 40% in January-July

MOGILEV, 29 September (BelTA) – In January-July 2010, the trade between Mogilev Oblast and Georgia rose 1.4 times to exceed $3.5 million compared with the same period of 2009, Chairman of the Mogilev Oblast Executive Committee Piotr Rudnik said as he met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Georgia to Belarus Giorgi Chkheidze, BelTA has learnt. The Georgian diplomat is on an official two-day visit to Mogilev Oblast. “Our trade is on the rise, but it lags behind our true potential and capacities. This is why we should undertake concrete steps to strengthen and expand the economic cooperation and significantly increase the foreign trade,” Piotr Rudnik said. The Mogilev Oblast Governor invited the diplomat and potential Georgian investors to take part in the fifth international investment forum “Mogilev Oblast – New Investment Horizons” that will be held in Mogilev on 7 October. “We will be happy to see a Georgian business delegation at the forum. We would like to discuss economic cooperation prospects, and identify promising investment projects, like setting up a facility to bottle Georgian wines in Mogilev Oblast,” Piotr Rudnik said. The Georgian Ambassador gratefully accepted the invitation and said that during his two-day visit to Mogilev Oblast he received a lot of useful information that will be a kind of foundation for the development of the bilateral relations. “I am convinced that all the proposals of Mogilev Oblast will be carefully considered by Georgians. What matters most is that we have a great potential and will to promote all areas of cooperation,” Giorgi Chkheidze emphasized. In particular, Georgia would like to purchase more Mogilev-made elevators, Bobruisk-made tires, dairy and other products. According to the diplomat, one of the crucial cooperation fields is the promotion of cultural links. The parties are already working hard on it. In early November, Minsk will host the Days of Georgian Cinema, in December a concert featuring Nani Bregvadze and Vakhtang Kikabidze. The ambassador suggested holding similar events in Mogilev. Georgia accounts for less than 1% of the Mogilev Oblast trade with non-CIS states. In January-July 2010, the bilateral trade made up over $3.5 million, up 40% compared with the same period a year before. The export made up $3.4 million, the import $75,100. Belarus posted a trade surplus of over $3.3 million. Belarus’ major exports to Georgia include rolled roofing material, tires, elevators, and fluid pumps. Belarus imports citrus and other fruit from Georgia.

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