Business forum as stimulation to economies of Serbia and Kazakhstan – Production of fire engines worth USD 30 million contracted

At the Serbia-Kazakhstan business forum, which opened today in Astana, the first business arrangements between companies of the two countries have been made, stated the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia, Marko Cadez.

– A Serbian and a Kazakh company have signed an agreement on the production of fire engines worth USD 30 million – Cadez said.

He pointed out that the delegation of Serbian businessmen arrived to the Astana gathering, opened by prime ministers of Serbia and Kazakhstan, Aleksandar Vucic and Bakhytzhan Abdiruly Sagintayev, with concrete projects.

Cadez reminded, as reported by the CCIS, that a better economic cooperation between Serbia and Kazakhstan had been established in 2015, but that it was still far below the realistic possibilities and needs.

According to Cadez, the CCIS has, together with the scientific community and companies, based on the 2050 Development Strategy adopted by the president of Kazakhstan, prepared a suggestion as to how Serbian companies and scientific elite could take part in realizing the document.

– We have prepared numerous projects in the areas of agriculture, waste water treatment, waste management, renewable energy sources. We have developed an array of programs which the Kazakh side might find interesting – Cadez said.

There are nearly 60 Serbian and 110 Kazakh companies at the business forum in Astana and they have an opportunity to negotiate business arrangements directly.

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that the friendship between the two peoples needed to be accompanied by a more intensive cooperation in all areas, especially in economy.

According to Vucic, Serbia has the largest market in the Balkans and is proud of its preferential agreements in the areas of trade, especially those with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.

– The preferential regime is our advantage and we wish to use it as much as possible – Vucic emphasized.

The prime minister said that Serbia and Kazakhstan had bigger and better prospects than many countries which “only yesterday appeared to us as an ideal impossible to reach”. He pointed out that the growth of both countries showed that we were doing a good job, and that the cooperation and friendship might contribute to accomplishing even greater results. Vucic added that our companies were doing great in Kazakhstan and that there was room for increased exchange of tourists and athletes and said that Kazakhstan could be Serbia's political ally in the Eurasian Economic Union.

There was also talk about the export of Fiat. Vucic added that the prime minister of Kazakhstan would discuss the matter with his Russian colleague, Dmitry Medvedev, and that Serbia would get an answer regarding the possibility of exporting Fiat vehicles under preferential conditions to the EEU market as soon as possible.

According to Vucic, it's a great success that the two countries have first established extraordinarily good political relations and that companies are benefiting from it. He said that Energoprojekt alone would become much more engaged in Kazakhstan and that our country would export more than just seeds and seedlings.

The prime minister reminded that the export from Serbia to Kazakhstan had grown by 6% in the first eight months and that the import had dropped by 9% and added that the amounts in the merchandise trade remained low. As he said, Serbia primarily exports fruit, vegetables and pharmaceutical drugs and imports raw materials.

He added that Serbian companies were already engaged in the construction sector and that they were taking part in large projects. The economic cooperation, as he added, might extend to other areas as well, and there's potential in privatization in agriculture and petrochemistry.

Profit in Kazakhstan larger than in Europe

The president of the Serbia-Kazakhstan Business Council, Vladimir Milovanovic, estimated that there was room for cooperation and that our businessmen could invest in Kazakhstan and make more profit then in Europe.

General Manager at Srboexport, Miroslav Nikolic, says that his ten years of experience in Kazakhstan ensure him that the potential for cooperation is huge.

– Kazakshtan is a country where there's a lot of construction activity and where lots of investments are made. Serbian companies have a great potential in this market. We have been traditionally welcome in the markets of Kazakhstan and the region and that potential should be used – Nikolic said.

Nikolic, whose company deals in international transport, praises the initiative by Prime Minister Vucic and the CCIS, who have, as he emphasizes, provided an opportunity for fruitful meetings with Kazakh businessmen.

– It would be hard for us to alone establish contacts such as can be made at considerably higher levels – Nikolic said.

Dragan Kostic, director executive of the Pirot Free Zone and the president of the Regional Chamber of Commerce of Pirot had meetings with representatives of the Kazakh economy at the forum with the aim of establishing further cooperation of Kazakh companies with businessmen from the area of the RCC of Nis.

Privredna komora Srbije

Vlada Republike Srbije

Energoprojekt Holding a.d. Beograd

Koncern Srboexport doo Obrenovac

Slobodna zona Pirot ad Pirot

Regionalna privredna komora Niš

Serbia Kazakhstan Business Council

CCIS

Marko Cadez

Serbia Kazakhstan business forum

Aleksandar Vucic

Government of Serbia

duty free export

free trade

Eurasian Economic Union

export of Fiat to Russia

export to Kazakhstan

import from Kazakhstan

fire engine production

Vladimir Milovanovic

Miroslav Nikolic

economic cooperation between Serbia and Kazakhstan

Srboeksport

Dragan Kostic

RCC of Nis

Bakhytzhan Abdiruly Sagintayev

Government of Kazakhstan