23 Aug 2004 10:25

Interfax-West News Agency in Belarus Announces the Creation of the Largest Reference Information Website in the Country

The Inerfax-West news agency has launched a renewed www.interfax.by portal, which offers access to the unique information resources of the agency and all kinds of reference information on Belarus.

The renewal of the portal reflects the important role that Interfax-West plays in keeping Internet audiences informed on what is happening in Belarus and on what the Belarussian market has to offer to consumers of various goods and services.
"Setting up the www.interfax.by reference information portal is an attempt to offer services to clients that include what is a new audience for Interfax - the average consumer, the ordinary person who may be interested both in news and in any other useful information," said Interfax-West General Director Vyacheslav Zenkovich.
"Until today, we were focusing on information products that targeted the media and people who are professionally interested in politics and economics," he said.
The numerous visits the portal had during its first days of operation mean that the site not only provides information that is in demand, but also that it has a large development potential, Zenkovich says.
The team of fine journalists and computer specialists involved in the project are seeking to make the portal as informative as possible, something that will make it even more attractive in the future. Interfax also plans to try to encourage the providers of various goods and services to take part in the project.
The www.interfax.by website includes 16 specialist sections, including Technology, Education, Culture, Sports, Tourism, and Real Estate.
It also includes a reference service that is to become accessible in the very near future to subscribers of Velcom, the largest mobile telephone operator in Belarus. Visitors to the portal and Velcom subscribers will be able to place their notices on the website.
Via the portal‘s forum, specialists in various fields will answer visitors‘ questions in real-time mode.
In addition to reference material on the Belarussian capital of Minsk, the site will soon publish comprehensive information on all regions of the country.
The www.interfax.by site will thus offer any kind of information one is looking for - how to get a job, where to spend a vacation, and who offers a particular product or service. For instance, with the next school year starting on September 1, parents can find out everything about the school reform and look at school ratings in Minsk.

You can also learn where apartments are being built and how much they will cost. The search system can help you to buy or sell an apartment, brief you on the formalities and taxes involved, and tell you how to get a loan to finance your purchase.
Interfax-West, a member of the Interfax Information Services Group, has existed on the Belarussian political and economic information market since 1994. Since that time, the agency has earned a reputation as the most trustworthy, competent, and prompt provider of objective information in Belarus.
Interfax-West has bureaus in all principal industrial and agricultural regions of the country.