ST. PETERSBURG, July 28. /TASS/. Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov believes that it would be easier for Russian entrepreneurs to enter the countries of the African continent with high value-added products. He expressed this opinion in an interview with TASS on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit.
"African markets are not spoiled by European and American goods. Therefore, it will be much easier for Russian manufacturers to enter there not with raw materials that Africa is already rich in, but with highly processed products. These are food, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, trucks, helicopters, semiconductors, veterinary vaccines, lumber, steel pipes and rolled products," the minister said.
According to him, the production of medicines is promising in Algeria, and Yandex-taxi operates in Cote d'Ivoire, Senegal, Congo and Ghana. Another important area of cooperation is tourism, Reshetnikov said.
"Every year, the unique nature and original culture arouse more and more interest among Russians. Over the past year, our citizens made almost a million trips to the continent. We will expand the geography of direct flights between Russia and African countries. Now there are direct regular flights from Moscow to Ethiopia and Algeria, which allows the Russians to get to their final destination faster," he said.