The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has markedly increased its activity in Belarus. Not long ago, this financial institution signed a memorandum with the government on the privatization of Belinvestbank. We decided to talk about this and other things with the head of the EBRD office in Belarus Francis Delaey.
– Why is there an increase in the Bank’s activity in Belarus?
– In 2009 the bank strategy changed. It led to us being able to implement smaller projects more efficiently. This is reflected in the speed of decision-making and the amount of funding. For example, in 2013-2014, we funded projects of 255 and 245 million Euro, respectively.
– Is it possible to explain your increased activity in Belarus by the fact that the Bank is forced to curtail its projects in Russia through the introduction of sanctions against it?
– No, these are completely unrelated things. Each country has its own separate country strategy, and our decision-making on projects in Belarus is guided first of all by the relevant financial and other criteria that allow us to make a decision on funding a particular project here.
– You are you working mostly with private enterprises in Belarus. Do you calculate the risks of a possible government interference in the activities of these organizations? The latest case – the return of the enterprise Motavela to state ownership through error of owners indicates that the probability of nationalization is quite big.
– It is difficult to comment on this example, as the company is not the client of our bank. Therefore, we do not know the situation well and I will perhaps refrain from commenting. With regard to relations between the public and private sectors, these relationships can have different range of shades, and this happens not only in Belarus, but also worldwide. With specific regard to our projects in the private sector, our customers do not experience any problems or any significant pressure from the state, that should be brought up. In other words, we are operating normally.
– The activity of the Bank also depends on the state of the economy. Now Belarus is in recession. According to estimates of your experts, what are the prospects of the Belarusian economy in the near future?
– The EBRD is mainly engaged in forecasting GDP growth. We can say that this year we forecast a fall in GDP of 2.5%. Already in the first quarter of this year, we noted a drop of 2%. The following year, the Bank does not guarantee growth. It means that the growth of the Belarusian economy will be zero.
– Finally let’s talk about the current projects of the EBRD. How is the process of privatization of Belinvestbank going and what should be expected from your organization in the near future?
– We have certain limitations in terms of what we can talk about regarding potential projects. We have a portfolio of projects that we expect to complete, but, unfortunately, we cannot mention concrete plans for certain periods due to the situation we are in and a confidentiality agreement. As for the Belinvestbank, it is a significant step in relations between the Bank and the Republic of Belarus. We look forward to successfully moving ahead through cooperation and giving first loans to Belinvestbank by the end of this year, as well as start working with Belinvestbank in the framework of trade facilitation.
Alyaksei Minchonak, Belsat.eu/en/
