On July 28, 2023, as part of the work of the II Economic and Humanitarian Forum "Russia - Africa" in St. Petersburg, a delegation of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry held working meetings with the delegations of the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Mali and Burkina - Faso.
The meetings were attended by Messrs. Vladimir Platonov, the President of the MCCI, Suren Vardanyan, the Vice President of the MCCI, Vladislav Mishchenko, the Advisor to the President, and Konstantin Anastasiadi, the Chairman of the MCCI Commission for Economic Cooperation with Partners of Sub-Saharan Africa.
The President of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry described for his African colleagues the current state of Moscow's economy, the favourable business climate that has developed in the Russian capital, and presented the attending states with the project of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry, aimed at assisting and working with foreign students studying in Russia, which is an extremely promising venue from the economic, political and, finally, humanitarian points of view. Mt. Platonov proposes to launch an educational project with the help and support of the MCCI, which is to be positioned at the juncture of the three principal endeavours: business, government and higher education. It will be designed for developing entrepreneurial competencies and career skills of foreign students studying in Russian Universities, while immersing them in the entrepreneurial environment of the Russian Federation.
This project is designed, on the one hand, to promote entrepreneurship and employment of the most successful and talented graduates of Russian Universities, and, on the other hand, to improve Russia's image in the world and develop cordial relations with African countries.
Today, there are more than 34 thousand students from African countries studying in Russia. The guests from Mali and Burkina - Faso, who came to the “Russia-Africa Forum”, are extremely interested in developing cooperation with Russia. After presenting the export and investment opportunities of their countries, they showed keen interest in the possibilities offered by the Moscow CCI, which affords many companies viable chances to actually have their representatives gain a foothold on the diverse Russian market.
The working interaction between the Chambers of Commerce and Industry will continue.