OREANDA-NEWS. August 19, 2008. There are no obstacles to attracting investments in Belarus, First Deputy Economy Minister Piotr Zhabko told reporters after a session of the Presidium of the Council of Ministers, reported the Official website www.government.by.

The session chaired by Belarusian Prime Minister Sergei Sidorsky discussed the results of the investment activity in Belarus in H1 2008. According to Piotr Zhabko, there are no economic reasons in Belarus for failing to meet the investment target which is to increase investments up as against last year.

The banking system is ready to satisfy companies’ demand for loans to the full. The Belarusian companies have gross profit, increase investments in production. The Government has already adopted the major part of the documents necessary for investments attraction. To perform the task for 2008 we need work hard, meet the schedules and realise the plans, the First Deputy Minister highlighted.

He also noted that investments are not attracted for the sake of investments. These are new technologies, development of production, output of new products and, as a result, higher wages including small towns. The Government has set the task to control the investment processes at big companies and also small and middle-sized companies.

According to Piotr Zhabko, foreign business shows interest in the Belarusian economy and the investment process has been gathering momentum.

Today specialists are preparing a document which will change the status of the National Investment Agency. Once the document is adopted, the integral system for raising investments will have been created. An effective mechanism of implementing turn-key investment projects will be set up. The agency will become “a door for the investor who wishes to work in Belarus,” Piotr Zhabko noted.