Italian business in Ufa

On July 1, an online conference was held in Ufa, where participants discussed trade and economic cooperation between the representatives of the Italian-Russian Chamber of Commerce, the Italian association «Sant'Agostino» and the Ufa City Administration.

The capital of Bashkortostan was represented by Deputy Head of Ufa City Administration Damir Galiullin, member of the Italian-Russian Chamber of Commerce in Bashkortostan Ruslan Kinzikeev and structural divisions.

Member of the Italian Academy of the History of Culinary Arts Gianguido Breddo, organizer of the Society for Cooperation between Italian and Bashkortostan Business Circles Andrea Bettoni and other experts from various business areas represented the Italian Republic.

Welcoming the conference participants, Damir Galiullin expressed gratitude for their interest in developing and expanding cooperation.

«We consider Italy as one of the leading economic partners. Last year, the mutual trade turnover between Bashkortostan and Italy amounted to almost $41 million. We exported mainly mineral products. We see serious prospects for expanding the Russian-Italian business partnership in various fields. We are ready to expand cooperation in the field of medicine, mechanical engineering, development projects, light industry, fashion and design. It is also important to develop cooperation in the field of culture and urban planning», he noted

Today, about 500 Italian business structures operate in Russia. The range of industries in which they are represented is impressive: electric power, steel, oil and gas and petrochemical industries, helicopter manufacturing, agro-industrial complex, transport infrastructure and much more.

As Ruslan Kinzikeev noted, cooperation between Russia and Italy began back in the 60s. So, in 1964, the Italian-Soviet Chamber of Commerce was established in Milan. The first projects it worked on were the creation of the Zhiguli automobile plant in Togliatti and the construction of an ethylenediamine production facility at Soda OJSC in Sterlitamak.

«Today, our Chamber of Commerce is the only official organization that can maintain the relationship between Russia and Italy. Given the difficulties in interacting with companies associated with a shift in the delivery of goods, or a complete refusal to supply products and further cooperation, we are ready to provide assistance and assistance in resolving emerging issues», he stressed.

Representatives of the Italian Republic, in turn, made presentations on the possibilities of cooperation with them in the field of public catering, the production of machine tools and the creation of the production of pleasure boats, and also shared their experience in managing companies.

According to the representative of many Italian companies, Antonello Scarlatella, small businesses in Italy are going through hard times and are under serious pressure. The Italian government provides state support exclusively to large enterprises and does not support SMEs in any way. In this regard, Italy is seriously considering Russia, in particular Ufa, to transfer its business.

As a result of the conference, Damir Galiullin offered the Italians sites for the production of footwear, clothing and other products. Representatives of Italy became interested in the proposal, and it was decided to hold a series of online meetings with Italian entrepreneurs.