Page 28 - BELRptJuly18

construction of ultra-modern office premises at upper floors and shops, cafes, and restaurants on bottom floors."
9.1.6 Agriculture sector news
Belarus expects to bring in as much grain in the 2018 harvest as it did last year , the nation's Deputy Prime Minister Mikhail Rusy said in an interview to the Selskaya Gazeta newspaper. Rusy did not provide exact amount of harvest. According to the country's Agriculture and Food Ministry, Belarus harvested more than 8mn tonnes of grain, excluding corn, in 2017. "Due to unfavourable weather conditions in 2018, spring field works began two weeks later than last year.
China will provide a CNY2.5bn ($390mn) concessional loan to Belarus to fund an huge agricultural sector investment project . Belarus will raise a concessional governmental loan from China for the period of 15 years in 2019-2024 to implement the investment project related to building a high-tech full-cycle agricultural enterprise in 2016-2032 (second stage), BELTA news agency reported on June 10.
According to bne IntelliNews correspondent in Minsk, the project is controlled by offshore companies controlled by associates of fugitive Kyrgyzstan's ex-president Kurmanbek Bakiev. He fled Kyrgyzstan after being overthrown in late April 2010.
According to the government documents, draft loan agreement between the government of Belarus acting through the Finance Ministry and the Export-Import Bank of China as the basis for holding negotiations. The Finance Ministry has been authorised to hold the talks and sign the document provided agreements are reached within the approved draft loan agreement.
The first stage of the high-tech investment project in agribusiness was signed by Belarus and China in February. The concessional loan under the agreement was estimated at CNY1.75bn.
The agricultural output of Belarusian enterprises of all categories increased by 3% year-on-year to BYN4.5bn ($2.2bn) in comparable prices in January-May, according to the national statistics agency Belstat.
State-run agricultural enterprises, which are dominated in the country's economy and for the most part losses-making, increased their output by 3.5% y/y to BYN4.4bn in January-May.
Belarusian agricultural enterprises (all categories) produced 754,600 tonnes of livestock and poultry (live weight), which was up by 0.3% y/y. The output of milk was 3.012mn tonnes (up 2.4% y/y) in January-May.
As of early June, the cattle population amounted to 4.3mn head, up 0.3% y/y, including 1.4mn cows (a 0.2% y/y increase).
9.1.7 TMT sector news
28 BELARUS Country Report July 2018 www.intellinews.com
Over 100 new companies have been registered in Belarus’ Hi-Tech Park, which is a historic record , BELTA news agency r eported on June 4. In