DUSHANBE, April 18, Asia-Plus – Tajikistan seeks closer economic cooperation with Lithuania, outlining rail transport and energy sector as areas for cooperation between the two countries. The Tajik side offered Lithuanian entrepreneurs the launch of joint ventures in the identified other areas.
A business forum bringing together Tajik and Lithuanian entrepreneurs was held in Dushanbe yesterday afternoon.
Representatives from Lithuania’s large companies working in sectors like food industry, construction of building materials, transportation and carriage building, participated at the meeting.
Deputy Economic Development and Trade Minister, Abdughaffor Rahmonov, inaugurating the meeting noted that the government of Tajikistan offers investors equal opportunities and protection of their rights and interests irrespective of forms of property.
According to him, to attract investment in the country’s economy changes have been made to Tajikistan’s Tax Code. “If foreign company invests more than $5 million, it is exempted from eight of seventeen types of taxes, including VAT, tax on profit and tax on land,” the deputy minister said.
During the meeting, Tajik specialists submitted a number of investment projects for consideration to Lithuanian entrepreneurs.
Zumrat Ghaybulloyeva, the chairperson of the department for foreign economic ties of the Ministry of Energy and Industries, noted that under the government’s long-term program 71 small power plants with a total capacity of 480.571 million kWh will be built in Tajikistan in 2007-2020. “We offer Lithuanian entrepreneurs to participate in projects aimed at developing mining, textile and food industries,” she said.
Algimantas Akstinas, the head of Lithuania’s International Chamber of Commerce, said in interview with Asia-Plus that Lithuanian entrepreneurs participating in the meeting had offered their Tajik colleagues a number of directions of cooperation that could drive the bilateral trade between the two countries, including rail transportation and food industry. According to him, Lithuanian port Klaipeda, which is one of the largest ports on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, may offer its services to Tajik entrepreneurs.
According to the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (MoEDT), a two-way trade between Tajikistan and Lithuania in January-March 2007 has valued at $10 million. This consisted of Tajikistan’s exports to Lithuania estimated at $36,300 and Tajikistan’s imports from Lithuania worth $9.9 million. The main items of Tajik exports to Lithuanian are cotton fiber and aluminum. From Lithuania, Tajikistan imports primarily food goods and cars.
