The BBC Plenary Session will be chaired by Uffe Ellemann-Jensen,
Chairman of the Baltic Development Forum, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark,
and Monty Akesson, Chairman of the Foreign Investors Council in Latvia.
On 29 February the current meeting of the Baltic Business Conference
Plenary Session working group was convened. Themes and speakers, including governors of
regional and multinational companies and banks, government representatives and heads of
international organisations, were approved for the Baltic Business Conference Plenary
Session during the meeting.
The BBC Plenary session will be chaired by Uffe Ellemann-Jensen,
Chairman of the Baltic Development Forum, former Denmark’s Minister of Foreign Affairs,
and Monty Akesson, Chairman of the Foreign Investors Council in Latvia.
Monty Akesson emphasised that over 20% of speakers will have several
years of investment experience in the Baltic region, which is a very significant aspect in
view of forming a general impression about the region when addressing those financiers and
investors, for whom the Baltic Business Conference is the first visit in Riga.
“It is one thing if you speak about general developments and give an
overall assessment of the situation, but it is a quite different thing if people who have
already invested in Latvia talk about problems, possibilities and trends”, admitted
Monty Akesson.
Among the 60 speakers of the conference there will be the European
Commission Commissar of Transport and Energy, as well as governors of banks and leaders
from Russia, the US, Europe representing areas significant to the Baltic countries, such
as energy, transport, information technology and telecommunication, including Swedbank Board
Chairman, governors of the EBRD and the European Investment Bank, managers of the Baltic
region electric power and gas companies Baltrel and Baltic Gas, President of
Statoil, Vice-President of IBM and others.
In addition, the conference will be attended by leading Baltic state
businessmen, financiers and government representatives, including Hansabank
President, Minister of Economy of Lithuania, Minister of Finance of Estonia, Prime
Minister of Latvia, President of the Bank of Latvia and other important officials.
