OREANDA-NEWS. On 03 September 2009 was announced, that the share of the private sector [“companies without departmental affiliation”] in attraction of foreign investment fell to 32% in the first half of the year from 60% in January-June 2008, First Deputy Economy Minister Petr Zhabko told reporters.

“We observe a downward trend, so we must focus on attracting foreign investment in the state sector. This is why we adopted resolution #2031 [back in 2008] to approve the list of 115 priority investment projects. Of them, 78 are being implemented now, and we are still looking for investors in the remaining 37,” Zhabko said.

The government aims at creating sources for economic growth in the post-crisis period. “In industry, the situation is far from favorable, and internal sources for modernization have narrowed. Profits and the return rate have been decreasing; this is why we focus on foreign investment. It does not play the crucial part in the economy, but foreign investment will always remain extremely important,” Zhabko said.

Foreign investment inflows in Belarus rose 27% on the year in the first six months to U.S. USD 4.2 billion, including USD 2.478 billion worth of foreign direct investment, twice as much as in the first half of 2008.