A Place of Strength

Ufa has taken a prominent place on the map of international and local Russian forums. Last year, the capital of Bashkortostan hosted the massive SCO and BRICS summits, and this year, it became the capital of the Russian petrochemical forum, which joined together the traditional international forum Big Chemistry and the International Specialized Expo and Conference Gas. Oil. Technologies.

Events of such magnitude have allowed Ufa to loudly announce itself not only within Russia but also in the SCO and BRICS countries, as well as in many developed nations, with whom we have long communicated.

The preparation for the events gave a serious impetus to the revitalization of the city’s image: Ufa has become more comfortable and more beautiful. The residents of Ufa have also changed a little themselves, as they now feel that they do not just live in any provincial town, but in a cultural capital. We are happy to welcome guests to our home city, and it is gratifying to see them delighted and eager to return.

The scale of the city is of great importance: Not everyone can simultaneously host 3,000-5,000 people. The infrastructure of the venue, such as Internet access, good 3-5 star hotels, and transport accessibility must all be well developed. Large-scale international events have been a kind of promotion for the city, which today gives us a certain marketing effect and a special advantage. Now people know that the capital of Bashkortostan is perfectly feasible for holding events of this level, that guests are well received, and official events are competently organized. Consequently, when choosing a region for summits, exhibitions, seminars, and round tables, they are secure in selecting Ufa. Our convenient geographical location is also bearing fruit.

Undoubtedly, international summits are important to the economy of the region as it gets introduced to interesting businesses in other countries and finds new partners. We have long been working with Brazil in producing Marcopolo buses. Not so long ago, we started working with a company from South Africa called Bell, producing articulated dump trucks. We’ve already gone through the first phase of localization, and it would be great to see the localization process expand annually. We have worked closely with China since the Soviet times, and the country is our biggest partner. For example, at the Gas. Oil. Technology expo at the end of May the delegation from only one Chinese region will consist of 60 people, yet we have close ties with five provinces of the PRC. But we want to expand out business contacts even further. The difference in the rate of expanding relations is very visible after the summits, and it is very significant.

The first regional SCO and BRICS forum took place last October. This cooperation is not between country capitals, but an interaction at the regional level. Following the event, we have already made more than a dozen joint visits to China, and, in turn, representatives of Chinese provinces visited us as well. This strategy is justified. The regional government is interested in promoting local businesses and attracting new players onto its market more than everyone else. This is targeted work, like the art of an acupuncture specialist who only targets specific points. The effect of this work is interesting and fruitful, so we will continue to develop along this path and work more with the regions.