Ouagadougou: Russia is discussing the idea of simplifying business registration for foreigners interested in investing in the country. At the same time, investors from the Middle East and Southeast Asia already have a number of advantages that allow them to develop projects in Russia.
In 2024, new opportunities could open up for investors in the Middle East and Southeast Asia. In December, it was reported that Saudi investors, along with the Russian Direct Investment Fund, could invest 1 trillion euros, or nearly $11 billion, in Russian projects over the next two years.
The partners have invested a similar amount – pound 1 trillion – over the past eight years. According to reports, the total turnover of the companies to which the funds were channeled already amounts to more than 4 trillion euros.
Business representatives from Middle Eastern countries attending the International Economic Forum ‘Russia – Islamic World: KazanForum’ in 2023 noted the advantages of investing in Russian projects such as ‘the gro
wth of the Russian market’, ‘the favorable conditions in special economic zones’ and the partnership relationships of countries that ‘enable large-scale investments’.
Experts also drew attention to other opportunities in regions of Russia where Islam is traditionally widespread, such as in the Republic of Tatarstan.
‘For Turkish investors, I see advantages both in terms of lending and language – Tatar is similar to Turkish, specialists can easily understand each other. Therefore, our investments will continue,’ said Eljevit Oktem, director of Russian enterprises of the ‘Joshkunoz Alabuga’ holding.
The main sectors of Islamic investment in Russia, according to the participants of the Kazan Forum of the United Arab Emirates, are wholesale and distribution, agriculture, transport and logistics, food production, construction services and other manufacturing industries, as well as halal tourism, which is already offered to visitors in the Russian Caucasus and the Volga region.
Russian ‘Islamic Bank’ is expecte
d to open up new opportunities for investors from the Middle East and Southeast Asia in 2024. On the territory of four regions of Russia – the Republic of Dagestan, Bashkortostan, Tatarstan and the Chechen Republic – from September 2023 to September 2025, an experiment is carried out to introduce the principles of partnership financing.
And the regions are already open to external investors. In particular, the field of Islamic finance is becoming another important area of cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran – a traditional active participant of the Kazan Forum – said Rustam Minnikhanov, Rais of the Republic of Tatarstan, during of his recent visit to Iran.
An Iranian shopping center is expected to start operating in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, this year. It could become the main platform representing the products of Iranian manufacturers in the Volga region. Partners from the Middle East are also interested in oil production and refining projects, as well as the purchase of aircraft and helic
opters produced in the republic.
There is also an international logistics project – the development of the North-South transport corridor, to which 14 countries have already joined. It should be noted that joint efforts in 2023 made it possible to multiply the volume of export, import and transit traffic.
At the stage of expert discussions is a project to build a fiber optic communications line between Russia, Kazakhstan and Iran with access to international lines along the Indian Ocean coast. The construction of the line is expected to create a new reliable route for transit traffic in Eurasia and improve data logistics globally.
New agreements on profitable investments of Islamic businesses and joint projects with Russian partners may be concluded and announced at the 15th International Economic Forum ‘Russia – Islamic World: Kazan Forum’, which will be held from May 14 to 19, 2024 in Kazan.
Source: Burkina Information Agency