BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 8
By Ilkin Seyfaddini – Trend:
The France-Uzbekistan business cooperation is growing, and is more and more diversified, Director for Eurasia, Asia, Pacific and Energy of MEDEF International (Mouvement des entreprises de France), Bogdan Gadenne-Feertchak told Trend in an interview.
Gadenne-Feertchak added that MEDEF International has been working with Uzbekistan since the country gain independence in 1991, in the framework of the France-Uzbekistan Business council of MEDEF International, chaired by Mr. Christophe Fontaine, chairman of Roxalex.
"For the past three years, Franco-Uzbek business relations have been growing and France's presence in the country is increasing; the openness of Uzbek authorities is highly appreciated by French companies. We have observed the changes in the country, and we share the feeling with French companies, of a strong appetite from the Uzbek side for the offer of products, services and solutions. If the bilateral exchanges remain overall modest, they are now on a sound path of growth," he said.
Director of MEDEF International stressed that French companies are very interested in the opportunities Uzbekistan has to offer in many sectors including energy, water and waste management, engineering, transportation and agri-food industry.
"Some very encouraging and satisfying results of the contacts that have been made over the past three years were observed this past month, with a few French companies that won contracts in Uzbekistan, mainly in the fields of sustainable city and renewable energies. We believe that these two sectors have a large potential for our bilateral relations, as Uzbekistan has great ambitions concerning their development, with the will of offering to its citizens an enhanced way of life, and complying with modern ideas of a sustainable development," Gadenne-Feertchak said.
He also noted that current sanitary crisis and all of its consequences, with possible long periods of quarantine, has brought to light the utter importance of diversified economies, modern and prepared health systems, digital transformation, and also food safety and food self-sufficiency.
French companies have solutions to offer in these sectors, and there are fields of great potential for business cooperation between the countries, said the director.
"The spread of coronavirus, its impact on the global economy and on the international trade flows will surely have a consequence for France-Uzbekistan business relations, as it slows down the flows worldwide, and each economy has to face its own pressing issues created by the virus outbreak and the quarantine measures necessarily taken. In this challenging context, our main goal is to continue the work we have done the past years with Uzbek authorities and French companies interested in the country; we believe, particularly in this context of crisis, in the importance of keeping a regular and thorough communication with our Uzbek partners and maintaining the link between French companies and the Uzbek side," he said.
Earlier, prospects for further consolidation of Uzbek-French interaction were discussed during a webinar organized by the Embassy of Uzbekistan in France, the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan and the delegation of French enterprises led by MEDEF International on April 22, 2020.
The event was attended by about 50 representatives of financial and industrial sectors, consulting services, as well as investment and commercial companies of France such as Airbus, Adeo, Air Liquide, BPI France, Credit Agricole, Suez, Fives, Idemia, Orano, Rothschild & CIE, Total-Eren and French Development Agency (FAR).
"During the next months, we will keep building bridges between French and Uzbek partners, and as soon as it will be possible, we will be working on organizing a new visit of business delegations of French companies to Uzbekistan, and prepare to welcome Uzbek government representatives in France in the framework of business meetings of the France-Uzbekistan business council," Gadenne-Feertchak stressed.
MEDEF International is the first French business international network, providing development support services. It is set up as an association by and for French companies. Without any public subsidy, MEDEF International operates in the collective interest of the French private sector and according to the priorities of organizations members. MEDEF International's activities concern all sectors of activity and covers more than 120 countries in the world, with an increased focus on emerging and developing countries which have been at the heart of organization’s action for 30 years.
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