Armenian-Estonian business forum at the UMBA

On September 10th, an Armenian-Estonian business forum was held in Yerevan. Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia hosted the delegation of the entrepreneurs of the Estonian Chamber of Commerce within their business visit to Armenia.

Welcoming the guests and wishing success to the participants of the conference, the Vice-president of the UMBA, Nerses Karamanukyan noted that the Armenian-Estonian ties have both historical and cultural as well as economic traditions. According to him, in the post-Soviet period, bilateral economic ties are far from sufficient, and it is necessary to take steps to fill the created gap.

In this sense, Estonia’s experience can be a landmark on the way of Armenia’s European integration. He expressed hope that the current mission of Estonian business circles visit to Armenia and the forum will contribute to the further strengthening of relations between the two countries, including in the field of trade and economic ties.

Margus Ilmjärv, head of Jõhvi Region Estonian Chamber of Commerce, emphasized the importance of further deepening of bilateral economic ties.

According to him, the purpose of their mission to Armenia is to find local business partners. He also underlined, that although the EU market is large and Estonia is closely integrated, there is also a lot of competition there, which pushes to search for new markets and establish new business connections. On behalf of Estonian businessmen, he expressed readiness to support Armenian partners in the process of entering the European market, to share their experience.

Estonia’s Chargé d’affaires in Armenia Peter Pals and Honorary Consul of the Republic of Estonia in Armenia, Avetik Ghukasyan welcomed the conference participants and wished them effective cooperation. Peter Pals underlined, that there are good prerequisites for developing bilateral relations in both political, economic and cultural arenas, to have united positions on international platforms.

According to Avetik Ghukasyan, the “economic leap” of Estonia is an exemplary landmark from which we can learn the necessary lessons.

Sona Mikayelyan, manager of investment promotion and external relations of “Enterprise Armenia”, presented the general economic profile of Armenia, investment opportunities, referred to the current legal framework, communication opportunities, international relations, and answered the questions of the audience.

The participants of the conference presented the activities of their companies, the expectations they have from the current conference and meetings. Information technologies, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, tourism, renewable energy and other fields were mentioned as prospective directions of bilateral cooperation.

The conference was followed by B2B meetings with the Armenian counterparts.