The Council of Ministers has, by its directive, authorized the statute of the Chinese-Belarusian Industrial Park and the charter of its administration.
The statute creates a legal basis for the operation of the park and specifies the structure and competence of its governing bodies and the procedure of granting and canceling registration as a resident of the park, according to the Council of Ministers press office.
An interstate coordinating council that will consist of Belarusian and Chinese government officials will function as the park's supreme governing body in charge of strategic development decisions. The council will be co-chaired by the co-chairpersons of the Belarusian-Chinese commission for trade and economic cooperation.
An administration, a body subordinate to the Council of Ministers, will be responsible for the daily operation of the park. The administration will work to draw in investment, establish and develop high-tech competitive businesses and create jobs.
A joint Belarusian-Chinese company will be responsible for the development of the park, which will include the designing and construction of the facilities stipulated by the general plan, investment, and the development of its infrastructure.
Residence in the park will be limited to Belarusian-registered legal entities that would specialize in electronics, fine chemistry, biotechnologies, machine-building and the development of new materials. Each company will be required at to spend at least $5 million under its investment project.
An interstate agreement on the establishment of the Chinese-Belarusian Industrial Park was signed in Minsk in September 2011 and ratified by the Belarusian parliament in December. Under Alyaksandr Lukashenka's edict, the park is to occupy a total area of 8,048 hectares (19,890 acres) in the Smalyavichy district near Minsk and have the status of a "special economic zone" whose residents will be granted special legal status for 50 years.
