The Development Bank branch became the first facility in the new microdistrict in Vitebsk
The grand opening of the new building of the branch of JSC "Development Bank of the Republic of Belarus" in Vitebsk on 1st Dovatora Street took place yesterday and marked the beginning of a new microdistrict in the city.
"This building is a gift to the city. It has initiated the construction of an entire microdistrict, which will be developed from this street to the stadium of the Central Sports Complex. But I am also pleased with another aspect: if the bank's management is building a new facility, it means they understand that there will be work for them in the region. We will provide you with a list of financing projects for full capacity in construction, industry, and agriculture," noted the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Nikolai Sherstnev, at the opening.
"Currently, employees occupy only three floors in the new five-story building; the rest is space for expansion," said the Chairman of the Bank's Management Board, Sergei Rumas, in his response. "Although the Development Bank is a relatively young financial institution, having recently turned only 6 years old, we have become a full-fledged development institution in the country, ranking third in the banking system by asset volume. The Vitebsk branch opened in 2013 and immediately became involved in addressing the socio-economic development challenges of the Vitebsk region. Since then, the total volume of credit resources invested in the region's economy has exceeded Br353 million. Now, the branch has its own building, which will create decent conditions for our employees and clients."
The issue of constructing a residential block on the site of the private sector in the city center was discussed for a long time and heatedly, and now the project has finally moved to the stage of practical implementation. Immediately behind the Development Bank building, the construction of an apartment building with improved layouts is in full swing.
In general, the construction is planned to include notonly residential buildings, but also objects of city-wide importance, such as the palace of water sports, schools, a shopping center, service facilities, parking lots, and others.
After the opening ceremony, a new book-album "Symphony of Centuries" from the Development Bank's social project "Cultural Heritage of Belarus" was presented. This is the third book in the project, and this time it is dedicated to the Polotsk land as the cradle of Belarusian statehood. The publication is timed to coincide with the 500th anniversary of Belarusian printing.
The opening of the new building coincided with the start of the bank's financing of an important Vitebsk long-term construction project – polyclinic No. 1 in the Yug-7 microdistrict. Now this facility is 100% financially secured, and it is planned to complete the construction and installation work next year. "Seeing that the funds allocated in the regional and city budgets were insufficient (at the previous pace of financing, construction would have dragged on for another 6 years), we approached the Development Bank. And they supported us by providing a preferential loan with a term of 10 years at 0.5 of the refinancing rate, covering the full requirement, which is very convenient for the city. We need Br25 million to complete it. And today we are transferring the first tranche – an advance payment to the builders. Next week, we will start laying the networks," said Viktor Nikolaykin, Chairman of the Vitebsk City Executive Committee.
Before obtaining the loan, the project was only a quarter complete (including the equipment for the future healthcare facility). The priority task now is to completely finish the building shells. The entire complex includes an entrance three-story building (which is already completed) and taller buildings, up to 7 floors. The general contractor is construction trust No. 9, and the customer is UKS Vitebsk. The future polyclinic is designed for a thousand visits per shift. "It completely covers the Yug microdistrict, whose population currently
have to travel to other clinics, remote from their homes, which are ultimately overloaded. That is, we will simultaneously improve the conditions for providing services at the polyclinic on DSK and polyclinic No. 3, which also serves the population of the new Bilevo microdistrict. A problematic issue for half of the city will be resolved," concluded the chairman of the city executive committee.The Chairman of the Board of the Development Bank, Sergei Rumas, in turn, reported that another social project is currently being coordinated with the regional executive committee - the construction of a hotel for VIP guests in Vitebsk. He clarified that the bank's task is to help structure the deal so that the loan terms for the construction of the hotel are comfortable for the local authorities. What exactly the hotel will be like is not yet specified.
The Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Nikolai Sherstnev, described this facility as "a small, cozy hotel for VIPs." He also shared his intention to continue cooperation and agree on preferential financing for the construction of the Palace of Marriage Registration in Vitebsk.
The Development Bank financed the purchase of more than 500 units of equipment for the agricultural sector of the Vitebsk region this year through OAO "Promagroleasing".
"No other region has received so much for agriculture in the last decades," emphasized Nikolai Sherstnev. And the Chairman of the Board of OAO "Development Bank of the Republic of Belarus", Sergei Rumas, clarified that the guarantee for this was the established trust between the regional leadership and the bank, which is ready to invest significant funds in financing the development processes of a reliable partner. "We still have a huge amount of work ahead of us: in matters of industry, agriculture, and road construction. We have outlined a specific program for financing facilities for the next 5 years. First of all, we are talking about new construction. In Vitebsk, for example, the Polotsk overpass project. Dairy farms: we are the only region that lags far behind others in this. We want to build at least 10 complexes with a milking herd of about 2 thousand heads in the near future. We do not have a single modern pig farm - we need to build that too. So that in literally 2, at most 3 years
"to transfer pig farming to advanced production conditions," the governor shared his plans. At the same time, Nikolay Sherstnev noted that much has already been done."Perhaps this building was also constructed because over the past two years, we have turned not only to the Development Bank but to all banks. One cannot be a dependent today; money must be returned. We are pursuing such a policy, however difficult it may be with repayment. The reciprocal reaction is visible – bankers are ready to finance our projects, which is what we need," the head of the region concluded.
The Development Bank actively finances investment projects in the Vitebsk region. The total volume of credit resources invested in the region's economy has exceeded Br353 million. It also participates in the implementation of key state programs in the region, in particular, the development of the dairy industry, potato growing and vegetable growing, poultry farming, and the industrial complex. Under its own program to support small and medium-sized businesses, the Development Bank has financed 121 investment projects in the Vitebsk region. The amount of credit resources provided was Br9.9 million.
"This year, we expect to invest about Br54 million in investment projects that we are completing or just starting in the Vitebsk region," noted Sergey Rumas. "These are all important sectors of the economy, infrastructure and social facilities, for example, a meat processing plant and a dairy plant in Glubokoye, a facility of the Vitebsk Broiler Poultry Farm, pork production in Tolochin, and others. Next year, the main funds will go towards financing the construction of dairy farms. We are currently selecting facilities in agriculture across the country on a competitive basis. I know that there are several applications from large farms in the Vitebsk region. They are solvent and want to build dairy complexes for 2,000 or more dairy cows, i.e., large farms."
Since its inception, the Development Bank has been actively financing investment projects in the Vitebsk region, both in agriculture and its product processing, as well as large infrastructure projects. "In terms of agriculture, the Vitebsk region has never been a simplewith the region. But with the arrival of the new regional leadership, we managed to build work on all accumulated debts in such a way that today we have no problems with loans. There is only a small overdue payment, for which there is a schedule. And the situation with debt repayment is better than in almost all other regions. Given this, we proposed that the Vitebsk region choose a social infrastructure project that we can finance on very preferential terms. The governor proposed the project for the construction of Polyclinic No. 1 in the Yug-7 microdistrict," said Sergey Rumas.