Press release issued by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly

VIENNA, 4 March 2009 - The following is a press release issued by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly today. The views expressed in this press release do not necessarily reflect those of the OSCE Chairmanship, nor of all OSCE Participating States.

OSCE PA hosts investment seminar in Belarus

COPENHAGEN, 4 March 2009 -- The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Working Group on Belarus is hosting a seminar next week in the capital Minsk on "Improving the Climate for Foreign Investment."

The seminar is organized with the Belarusian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly in cooperation with Germany's Friedrich-Ebert-Foundation and with the support of the OSCE Office in Minsk.

OSCE PA President Joao Soares, who is to address the seminar, is also scheduled to meet with the governmental and parliamentary leadership of the country as well as with opposition politicians and representatives of civil society.

"This joint parliamentary event is a milestone in the Group's work to facilitate dialogue between the Government and the opposition of Belarus in order to aid the development of democracy," said Uta Zapf, chair of the OSCE PA Working Group. "We hope that by focusing on improving the climate for foreign direct investment in these financially difficult times will emphasize the need for greater cooperation in the OSCE area."

The seminar, which takes place on Wednesday, 11 March, is expected to have about one hundred participants from Belarus as well as from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the European Commission, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The topics of the various sessions include promotion of small and medium enterprises, investment cooperation between Belarus and the countries in the European Union, and investment opportunities in Belarus.

The OSCE PA Working Group on Belarus is headed by the German parliamentarian Uta Zapf. Other members are: Claudio D'Amico, Italy; Morten Hoeglund, Norway; Pawel Ponscyljusz, Poland; Fred Ponsonby, United Kingdom; and Cecilia Wigstrom, Sweden.

The Working Group organized a seminar in Minsk in March 2007 under the title "Exploring the opportunities for Belarus within the European Neighborhood Policy."

Contact:

Klas Bergman, Director of Communications, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Tel. +45 33 37 80 40; Mob. +45 60 10 83 80; www.oscepa.org