Moscow – The President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, awarded Andrey Guryev, Chairman of the Russia–Brazil Council of Entrepreneurs and CEO of PhosAgro, the honorary Order of Rio Branco for his contribution to the development of bilateral relations.
The ceremony was held during President Bolsonaro’s meeting with representatives of Russian business in Moscow. Established in 1963, the order is one of the highest honours that a foreign citizen can receive in Brazil.
“Thank you, Mr President, for the honour and for the high regard for my contribution to the growth of Russian–Brazilian business relations. I am delighted to be able to draw on PhosAgro’s expertise and close partnership with Brazilian businesses to bring our countries closer together.
“During my time as Chairman of the Business Council, I have become convinced of the enormous potential of collaboration between Russia and Brazil. Actualising that collaboration and strengthening relationships between business circles have become an important personal mission for me.
“Receiving this award from you is an exceptional vote of confidence for the continuation of the Business Council’s results-oriented work. It is a symbol of high-level support and attention, which will help take the dialogue between Russian and Brazilian businesses to a whole new level for the benefit of our countries,” said Mr Guryev.
The Russia–Brazil Business Council was founded in 2004 to foster contacts between Russian and Brazilian businesses, promote Russian exports and investments in Brazil, and attract Brazilian investments in Russia. Since 2019, the Council has been led by Andrey Guryev, CEO of PhosAgro. The work of the Council of Entrepreneurs has noticeably intensified recently; bilateral business ties have expanded, and more proposals are being made to bolster trade and economic cooperation between Russia and Brazil.
Over the last 10 years, PhosAgro, headed by Mr Guryev, has doubled supplies to Brazil of eco-efficient mineral fertilizers without hazardous levels of toxic substances that are harmful to human health and soil. In 2021, the Company delivered 1.6 million tonnes of products to Brazilian farmers, which was a third more than the previous year. PhosAgro’s fertilizers account for around 14% of Russia’s overall exports to Brazil, making an important contribution to the governmental goal of expanding Russia’s high-tech non-commodity exports. PhosAgro’s office in Sao Paulo has been operational since 2015.