Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov meets Minister of Commerce of Tunisia and holds business forum

On October 16, during his working visit to the Republic of Tunisia, Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov had a meeting with Minister of Commerce of Tunisia Omar Béhi.

“Tatarstan is one of the leading and industrially developed regions of Russia. More than half of the population of the republic are Muslim. Our region is contributing to the development of relations between Russia Federation and the Tunisian Republic,” Minnikhanov said speaking at the meeting. “We have arrived in Tunisia to look into new opportunities for economic cooperation and would appreciate your assistance in expanding business contacts. High-tech products made in our republic, such as KAMAZ trucks, helicopters and other products, are well known in the countries of North African and the Maghreb,” he continued.

Omar Béhi noted that he has a degree in agricultural engineering and worked at the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries. Minnikhanov supported the conversation, stressing that Tatarstan is also one of the leading regions of Russia in animal livestock sector and agriculture, and suggested options for developing cooperation in the field of agriculture and food.

The discussion of issues of mutual cooperation continued during the Tatarstan-Tunisia Business Forum.

Delivering his welcoming speech at the forum, Tatarstan President Tatarstan thanked the representatives of the government and business of Tunisia for their interest shown to Tatarstan. “Tatarstan attaches great importance to the development of cooperation with Tunisia aimed at strengthening Russian-Tunisian relations. At my own level, I am always ready to contribute to the development of business relations,” he assured the participants. “Our republic has experience of interaction with Tunisian partners. Last year, an exhibition to present Tatarstan was organized together with the Russian Embassy in Tunisia. Today we have arrived to you and are ready to tell you in detail about our republic. The trade turnover between Tatarstan and Tunisia amounted to a little over 4.4 million US dollars last year. This indicator does not correspond to the existing opportunities and we believe we need to inensify our cooperation,” he continued.

Minnikhanov briefly told the forum participants about the annual International Economic Summit "Russia - the Islamic world: KazanSummit " and invited businessmen from Tunisia to attend the forum in 2019 to become more familiar with the enterprises of the region.

Welcoming the forum participants, Ambassador of Russia in Tunisia Sergey Nikolaev noted that today there is a unique opportunity for the business circles of Tunisia and Tatarstan to meet and discuss areas in which it will be possible to establish mutually beneficial ties. He touched upon the educational and scientific potential of the republic, stressing that Kazan is an excellent scientific school and it is necessary to thoroughly think about establishing direct contacts between higher educational institutions and scientific institutes.

Head of Tatarstan Investment Development Agency Taliya Minullina made a presentation of the economic and investment potential of the republic in French and Chairman of the regional State Committee for Tourism Sergey Ivanov told the participants about the tourist attractiveness of Tatarstan. Director for Africa at KAMAZ Foreign Trade Company Kirill Cherniltsevspoke informed the forum about new products in the model range of trucks, and Marketing and Sales Director of the Kazan Helicopter Plant Valery Pashko presented new models and modifications of helicopters manufactured in Kazan.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Tunisia signed an agreement at the end of the forum.