ArmInfo. The economic cooperation between Armenia and Switzerland is not at such a high level as it could be, "said Blake Matei, general director of the Union of Entrepreneurs of Switzerland, answering the question of ArmInfo on October 19 in the fields of the Armenian-Swiss business forum" Social and Friendly Economy and Stimulation of Social Cooperation . The best Swiss experience. "
"It's difficult for me to assess the Armenian business environment, but I can say that Armenian entrepreneurs have a strong will to go forward and desire to learn," he said. As priority spheres of cooperation between Switzerland and Armenia, Matei called agriculture and the sphere of information technologies. "Armenia and Switzerland already cooperate in the agricultural sector. However, there is still potential for deepening the relationship. Well, the IT sphere, which is rapidly developing. Definitely, there are still promising areas that we do not know about. But I think that today's business forum will reveal other niches for deepening cooperation, "the expert said. In this vein, he explained that within the framework of today's forum Swiss presentatives do not intend to teach something to their Armenian counterparts. We want to learn from you and share our experience, "he stressed.
According to B. Matei, Armenia is going to open economy today. However, according to him, there are still certain restrictions. "When I say openness, I mean not only trade, but your views, way of thinking," he concluded.
It should be noted that the business forum "Social and Friendly Economy and Stimulation of Social Cooperation. The best Swiss experience> is held in Armenia for the 8th consecutive year at the initiative of the Republican Union of Employers of Armenia. During the forum it is planned to hold discussions within the framework of round tables, B2B format meetings.
According to the National Statistical Service of Armenia, the foreign trade turnover between Armenia and Switzerland in January-August 2017 increased 3.1 times to $ 226.5 million. At the same time, exports increased 3.5-fold to $ 170 million, with imports up 2.2 times to $ 56.5 million.