The Market Reforms Programme

The programme for market reformation of the economy of the Republic of Belarus (1990) defined the following as strategic directions of socio-economic development of the country: the formation of the new in principle socio-economic system and the creation of an effective economic structure based on introduction of modern progressive technologies meeting the real needs of the society and able of sustainable functioning in conditions of market and integration into the world economy; transformation of property relations; development of entrepreneurship and formation of a competitive environment; liberalisation of foreign trade; increasing environmental safety; and legal support of market reforms and guarantees of human rights and liberties of citizens and their social protection.

The main conceptual provisions of the programme are reflected in important state socio-economic documents: The Socio-Economic Development of the Republic of Belarus till 2000 (1996), The National Strategy of Sustainable Development of the Republic of Belarus (1997), The Industrial Policy till 2015 (1998), and The Main Directions of Socio-Economic Development of the Republic of Belarus till 2010 (1998-1999).

These programme documents fix the directions and the mechanisms for implementation of the elaborated strategy for reforming and creating a prospective model of socio-economic that was determined as a socially-oriented market economy. To stimulate the development of the market economy, the State conducts a weighted liberalisation of different spheres of economy, transforms the state property into joint-stock and individual private property; new social types of economic entities adequate to market economy are being established with an active role of state regulation accompanied by the creation of flexible mechanisms of economy reformation.

Privatisation in Belarus is conducted along two main directions: the "small" privatisation covers spheres of trade and services, small-scale industrial and construction enterprises represented by municipal property; "big" privatisation concerns large enterprises included into the Republic's property. It presupposes paid or free transfer of state property into private or joint-stock (corporation) property for the purpose of attaining a reasonable balance of interests of various social groups.

The process of privatisation in the Republic is managed and coordinated by the Ministry on Management of State Property.

By now, the legal basis for reformation of property relations has been mostly formed in Belarus.

For the purpose of assuring a single state policy in the sphere of formation of state property, President of the Republic of Belarus issued Decree No. 3 on 20 March 1998 On Desta-tisation and Privatisation of State Property.

As regards property facilities representing the Republic's property, the dominant method of reformation is transformation of state-owned and leased enterprises into open joint-stock companies followed by the sale of shares to internal and external investors.

Most active processes of destatisation and privatisation take part in trade, transport and services and at enterprises of light, forest, woodworking and food industries.

Over the period of 1991-1998, the number of state facilities reformed in Belarus was 3,112, including 891 facilities representing the Republic's property and 2,221 facilities of com-munal property. Of all reformed state-owned enterprises, 1,038 facilities were transformed into joint-stock companies, 639 facilities were bought out by labour and renting collectives, 857 facilities were sold at auctions, and 34 facilities were sold through contests.

Restructuring is especially actively conducted in the machine building, the electrical engineering sector and in the instrument-making and the radio and electronics sector. Among the directions of restructuring of industrial enterprises the following may be picked out: the creation of concerns and holdings, the formation of branches and subsidiaries, the spinning-off of social infrastructure facilities, etc.

The law on destatisation and privatisation allows and even stimulates participation of foreign investors in privatisation, above all, of enterprises needing realignment and technical updating as well as of unprofitable enterprises and in-process construction facilities.

Foreign investors may acquire property rights at auctions or through contests, take part in authorised capital of the enterprise privatised, make use and dispose of privatisation facilities and results of their activities, including reinvest-ments, trade and other operations, acquire shares of enterprises through subscription using agency services of commercial banks and of broker's firms.

The law on ownership allows foreign artificial persons to have in Belarus production and other enterprises, installations and other property for the purpose of their economic activi-ties. In so doing, inviolability of property of foreign entrepreneurs and of their property rights is guaranteed.

In compliance with Decree No. 482 of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated 27 September 1995 economic groups may be set up pooled either through shared ownership or through a trusteeship management contract. Economic groups with participation of foreign persons can be set up only with consent of the President.

The Main Macroeconomic Tendencies in the Economy Development

The Republic of Belarus, having become a sovereign state, has preserved the role of one of leading economic countries of the former SU. The economic drop of 1992-1995 was replaced by a growth of production and establishment of political stability on the basis of correct choice of the development strategy and rejection of inconsistent reforms. When the transformation processes began, the traditionally high openness of the Belarusian economy predetermined the adoption of a strategy of multi-vector orientation of the foreign economic policy. Striving to integration within the CIS, Belarus at the same makes a wide use of opportunities of international division of labour and makes efforts to organise an effective co-operation with the West.

Belarus inherited from the USSR an unfavourable sectoral structure of industry and specialisation of other economic sectors subordinated to the goals of predominantly meeting the needs of the former single national economic complex of the country. Belarus exported more than 80% of trucks, 3/4 of tractors manufactured in the Republic, over 90% of fodder harvesters, about 90% of scrapers and excavating machines, and 73% of metal-cutting machines. In 1990, Belarusian potassium fertilisers constituted 56%, tractors 52.5% and refrigerators 33.6% of the total USSR export. Today, too, the effectiveness and competitiveness of the Belarusian economy are determined, to the known extent, by a high share of manufacture of production means. These products are mostly have the greatest demand and are competitive on markets of developing countries. At the same time, during the period of transition the country sees global structural transformations in the economy that facilitate the expansion of economic cooperation of Belarus with the outside world. As a result of an active economic policy of the State the deep drop of production of 1992-1994 was overcome; in 1995, stabilisation was achieved and a certain growth in separate branches of the economy was attained. The year 1996 became the year of radical change. The absolute drop was replaced by a growth of the gross domestic product (GDP): in 1996 it constituted 2.8% against 1995; in 1997 it went up to 11.4% as compared to 1996. A high increment of the GDP was attained in 1998 making 8.3% as compared to 1997. The speed of growth of the GDP and of the industrial output in 1996-1997 was significantly higher than in the neighbouring CIS countries, Poland and the Baltic States. Measures of state regulation of complex processes in all spheres of country's life after the disintegration of the USSR made it possible to overcome the production drop and achieve the path of economic growth.

As compared to the neighbouring states (except for Poland), Belarus had, in the period of transformations, much slower rates of GDP drop, and in 1997 its rate per capita as regards buying capacity was substantially higher. At the same time the negative current account balance of the country remained relatively moderate.

A substantial factor for economic development was an intensive resumption of disturbed inter-sectoral relations and the country's orientation towards foreign markets. The proof of competitiveness of the developing industrial potential of the country is the role of its leading sectors (machine building, metalworking, chemical and petrochemical industry, electricity generation, light and food, forestry and woodworking industries) in the world and European production.

Belarus is a large exporter of trucks, tractors, TV sets, refrigerators, chemical fibres and threads, potassium fertilisers, products of textile and light industries. Policy of economic relations conducted by the leadership of the country increases the role of Belarus in the international division of labour in the post-Soviet space. The volume of export per capita exceeds the respective indicators of many CIS countries.

Of special importance for Belarus saturated with large industrial enterprises built in 1950-1970 is the renovation of the outdated production equipment. The situation in the large industrial sectors influences the position of processing industry, agriculture, maintenance of the output of products in all economic sectors at the modern technological levels, and opportunities for development of the social spheres.

Today large industrial enterprises constitute the basis of the Belarusian economy. They employ almost half of the working population of the country. Due to the preserved potential of production facilities these enterprises have special interests in winning new external markets. The State provided them with a felt support for stimulating export as one of the priority directions of socio-economic development of the country. The scale of foreign trade of Belarus determines, to a significant degree, the economic safety of the country.

The foreign trade turnover of Belarus over 1997-1998 constituted 119% of the GDP whereas as regards the world community countries on the whole the volume of foreign trade turnover was on the average comparable with 38-39% of the world gross product. In the Russian Federation this indicator in 1998 was just over 40%. In 1997 the share of Belarusian export in the GDP constituted 54.2%. In 1998 it was 55.0% while the share of the import in the GDP was preserved at the level of 64.7%.

The volume of foreign trade of Belarus with the CIS country is maintained at the level of about 70% of the total volume of foreign trade turnover. Export supplies of products are oriented, mostly, towards Russia and Ukraine (92% of the total export to the CIS countries in 1995 and almost 97% in 1998).

With generally positive tendencies in the process of reformation of the national economy Belarus has encountered great difficulties. The year 1998 was extremely difficult. The country's economy felt the entire burden of the Russian crisis. In the second half of 1998 the rates of economic growth slowed down. This was manifested in a sharp jump of infla-tion. The situation in the financial system aggravated, which caused a substantial devaluation of the Belarusian rouble and was reflected in worsened indicators of trade balance and competitiveness of domestic products.

The Government of the country took preventive measures in the sphere of price formation and management of monetary and other spheres, which prevented the process of possible reduction of production output, first of all in industry. Orders and volumes of production remained rather stable.

High rates of outlined projected tasks for the most important macroeconomic indicators were preserved despite all the unfavourable conditions set in 1998. The output of industrial products went up by 12%, that of consumer goods by 20.8%, investments into the main capital increased by 16.2% and the trade turnover by 26%. Real monetary incomes of population went up by 19%. Despite financial problems that took place in the country the foreign debt of the country did not go up and the state budget was executed with a deficit that was sufficiently lower as compared to the planned level. Over the last 3 years (1996-1998) the GDP in real terms was increased almost by a quarter, the gross production of products and services in national economic sectors by 25.4% and the main capital accumulation by 33.5%. Real monetary incomes of population over these years went up by 47.6%. Intensification of the process of integration with Russia has a positive effect on a further effectiveness and technological flexibility of the Belarusian economy, which makes Belarus quite compatible with the European economy against the background of the parallel process of European integration.

Thus, Belarus was able to successfully overcome negative tendencies over the last years in the absence of a significant foreign investment and to resume the growth of production output, also preserving social stability in society. However, a number of complex problems are still to be resolved.

Given account of the real economic situation and foreign factors, a concept of moderate rates of economic transformations and assuring of development within the frameworks of the available resources accompanied by a reorientation of part of resources for social needs was adopted in the Republic. Among levers of state regulation and management of economic processes, it is necessary to name the step-by-step economically grounded privatisation, a moderately rigid monetary policy, the reduction of tax burden on enterprises, maintenance of a moderate deficit of the budget, measures aimed at correction of price misbalance including those due to limitation of cross subsidies. Parallel measures aimed at increasing incomes of population and compensation payments for low-income families are implemented.

Today, Belarus faces acute problems related to the reduction of terms of use of equipment and machinery and of updating of production for the purpose of increasing competitiveness of products to the level of world standards making it possible to reorientate export supplies of Belarusian commodities to Western markets. Therefore the economy of Belarus as well as economies of other CIS countries needs investments. Involvement of foreign investors will be facilitated by acceleration of weighted economic reforms, first of all at the expense of further elaboration of its legal basis, institutional and structural transformations, measures of state protection of domestic and foreign investors.

Investment attractiveness of Belarus is determined today not only by such quantitative indicators as dynamics and levels of GDP, labour productivity or capital investments but also by a number of qualitative parameters. This includes mobility of labour resources, transit orientation of the transport infrastructure, the technological level of enterprises, readiness of the production facility leaders for innovations, regulation of environmental protection, stability of society and of economy, governmental support, consistent actions of financial institutions, a relatively low level of consumer prices, basically predictable dynamics of the national currency, efficacy of the administrative system and the devel-opment of the educational system. Despite the fact that as regards the level of the aggregate labour remuneration per hour (0.2 dollars per hour on the average) Belarus is far behind European states, the country has preserved a high quality of labour force, the State assures preservation of the system of training and refreshment training of workers and highly skilled specialists as required for today.

By many criteria Belarus remains the most attractive republic of the FSU from the point of investments. The strategy of transformation conducted by the country's leadership has created prerequisites allowing, in interaction with European countries, to increase in the next 5 years its potential thus retaining its positions in the sphere of foreign economic competitiveness.

Foreign Entrepreneurship and Investments

Belarus is actively developing cooperation with the known international organisations: the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the World Bank agency assisting foreign investments (FIAC), etc.

As of 1.4.1999, the Republic of Belarus had 2,298 registered enterprises with foreign investments (1,445 joint ventures and 853 foreign enterprises). They were organised with participation of 64 countries of the world, predominantly with participation of partners from Germany, Poland, USA, Italy, and the Netherlands. Of the total number of registered joint ventures and foreign enterprises, 36% were set up in industry, among them 9% in the machine building, 8% in the food industry, and 8% in the woodworking sector.

Over the recent years, the Belarusian market has been entered by such huge companies as Ford - manufacture of cars, Coca-Cola - the project of construction of a soft-drinks plant (Coca-Cola Amatil Belarus JV), Salamander, Man, Macdonald's, Bayer, Neoplan, Siemens, Maers Medical, and Sandvik.

The most promising branches for inflow of foreign capital are electronics, the automotive industry, the petrochemical complex, woodworking, consumer goods and food products manufacture, secondary raw materials processing, manufacture of medical equipment, etc.

Belarus provides to a potential foreign investor rather broad opportunities for investing into the national economy. The country's legislation provides for the following forms of foreign investment activities:

• organisation of an enterprises fully owned by a foreign investor;

• organisation of a joint venture;

• buying out shares of enterprises.

Foreign entrepreneurial and investment activities are regulated by the Law On Foreign Investments, the Law On Investment Activities, the Law On Enterprises and the Law On Joint-Stock Companies. Foreign investments are protected against alteration of the Republic's legislation. If the follow-up legal acts worsen the conditions for activities of foreign investors, the laws in force at the time of investment retain their force in relation to these investors for another 5-year period.

The Law On Destatisation and Privatisation allows and even stimulates participation of foreign investors in privatisation, above all in privatisation of enterprises requiring realignment and technical updating as well as of unprofitable enterprises and in-process construction facilities.

Foreign investors can acquire property rights at auctions or contests, take part in authorised capital of a privatised enterprise, use and dispose of privatisation facilities and results of their activities, including reinvestment, trade and other operations, acquire shares of enterprises through subscription using agency services of commercial banks and broker's firms.

The Law On Ownership allows foreign artificial persons to have in Belarus production and other enterprises, installations and other property for the purpose of conducting economic activities. In such case inviolability of property of foreign entrepreneurs and of their property rights is guaranteed.

Enterprises with participation of foreign capital may use any volumes of local resources for manufacture of their products as well as unlimited volumes of imported resources. No tasks are set before them as regards the volume of export or hiring of solely local labour.

Lots of land may be allocated to foreign investors for lease for a period of not more than 99 years. In special cases (when products that are strategically important for the Republic are manufactured) they may be given, with consent of the President, a lot of land for private ownership.

A registered joint venture or a totally foreign enterprise receives the status of the artificial person of the Republic of Belarus and operates as part of the economic mechanism of the Republic; i.e. it is subject to jurisdiction of the Belarusian legislation and control by the state authorities; it is also covered by the controlling functions of tax authorities; when it performs export and import operations it must fulfil customs terms and conditions.

Foreign Trade Activities

The state policy in the sphere of foreign trade allows economic subjects of all forms of property, including foreign economic subjects, to operate without any discrimination in any sphere of entrepreneurial activities that are not prohibited by the law and are not detrimental to the economy. Foreign trade transactions are one of the most profitable types of economic activities.

From December 1992 the Republic of Belarus has the status of observer at the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, from 1 January 1995 - the World Trade Organisation). At the contemporary stage joining the WTO remains a priority direction of the state foreign economic policy.

Foreign trade activities are formed along the principles of openness of the economy, liberalisation and observance of terms and conditions determined by trade and economic agreements of the Republic of Belarus.

The state policy in the sphere of foreign trade is implemented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. With participation of the Ministry the National Centre of Marketing and Price Conjuncture has been set up and is operating. Its functions include preparation of databases for economic subjects, on foreign trade partners, etc. Besides, a special committee on control over foreign trade transactions has been set up at the Administration of the President of the Republic of Belarus. A broad network of market agents operates directly in the foreign economic sphere: trade firms and agents, organisers of fairs and exhibitions; consulting services on marketing and foreign trade; advertising agencies and polygraph enterprises; engineering consulting; a distribution network; transport, shipment and storage enterprises.

In compliance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus activities on export or import of certain types of commodities, work and services can be conducted on the ground of special permits (licences). The lists of these commodities, work and services, the procedure of licensing and the Republic's body authorised to issue licences are defined by the Government of the Republic of Belarus.

In compliance with Article 9 of the Law On State Regulation of Foreign Trade Activities it is established that no quantitative restrictions on export and import are introduced with the exception of restrictions connected with:

• assuring economic safety of the Republic of Belarus;

• protecting the domestic market;

• fulfilling international commitments.

The Agreement on the Customs Union between Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrghyzstan provides for the establishment of the single customs space of the said countries. The Customs Union is based on recognition of international norms and is oriented towards the principles of the World Trade Organisation. Customs duties, excises, quotas, licences and tariff and quantity restrictions concerning mutual trade have been annulled within the Union. Trade treatment conditions of the Union participants in relation to third countries have been fully coordinated. Customs control on internal borders was cancelled.

Free Economic Zones

To stimulate the development of foreign trade and narrow dif-ferences in the levels of economic development of different regions with due account of their specialisation, natural, geographic and resource features, three free economic zones (FEZ) have been organised in the Republic of Belarus, which have started their development. Brest Complex Free Zone has been organised for 50 years and unites in its activities the functions of economic, production, free customs, tourist and recreational, insurance and banking spheres. The territory of the zone is 70 km2. The zone attracts attention of small-scale and medium-scale businesses that are ready to invest (up to 5 million US dollars) for implementing small projects on development of trade, manufacture of construction materials, medicinal preparations, woodworking, and various services.

Minsk Free Economic Zone specialises in creation and development of production facilities based on new and high technologies; it possesses a developed production, intellectual and export potential of the region including the City of Minsk and the Minsk Oblast. The development of the FEZ presumes the building of the export potential of enterprises located in Minsk and the Minsk Oblast on the basis of their technical and technological updating and their inclusion into single technological chains not only in this region but also in the Republic as a whole, the deployment of a large transit transport centre in Minsk-2 National Airport, the organisation of technological parks and production facilities for operation, repair and maintenance of aviation machinery as well as of a network of services and communal servicing of aviation and automobile transportation. The Zone is located on 8 sites occupying 1,390 hectares. The Zone was set up for 30 years.

Gomel-Raton FEZ was set up on the basis of Raton Scientific and Production Amalgamation and the adjacent territory including 4,300 hectares. Its development is aimed at forming a compact export and industrial technological centre of science-intensive enterprises as a model variant for practical testing of all aspects of the Zone's operation and for disseminating the acquired experience to other enterprises and amalgamations of the country and to new FEZs to be organised, in particular FEZs now projected in the Oblast centres Vitebsk and Grodno. The prospects of development of Gomel-Raton FEZ will be determined, in many respects, by the conversion measures under way, in particular, in the sphere of precision machine building and radio and electronics.

To encourage the development of FEZs in the Republic, a number of privileges and other measures of state support for residents of free zones - both domestic and foreign - is stipulated.

Residents of FEZs will have the reduced rates of the tax on profits and incomes by 15% as well as on the income tax from citizens, a 10% reduction on the VAT and the ecological tax, fees for social insurance, state duties, excise and other duties. Residents whose profits are formed at the expense of realisation of their own products and services are exempted from the tax on profits for the first 5 years. When residents supply their own products in the amount of not less than 70%, the tax on profits for the next 5 years is calculated as 50% of the existing rate of this tax. Dividends of the residents of FEZs are not subject to taxation during 5 years from the time of their registration.

A simplified system of taxation for residents that are subjects of small entrepreneurship has been introduced whereas the general procedure of payment has been preserved only in relation to 8 kinds of taxes. The rate is established at 10% of the total revenues or the gross income.

For Belarusian and foreign participants in economic activities in the territory of FEZs, equal conditions and rights have been set. They have the right to use lots of land on the basis of long-term rental agreements, acquire property, shares and other financial assets, set up enterprises, branches and representations in forms stipulated by the national legislation, including enterprises (joint ventures or enterprises totally owned by foreign investors).

Taxes and Obligatory Payments

In compliance with the current legislation, the tax system of Belarus includes national and local taxes as well as obligatory payments. National taxes and obligatory payments are in force in the entire territory of the country and are transferred to the Republic's budget or Republic's extra-budgetary funds. Local taxes are in force in the territory of only the respective territorial administrative division and are transferred to the respective local budget.

Objects of taxation include property, incomes (profits) from economic activities, operations from realisation of commodities, movement of commodities across the customs border, etc.

Features of taxation and collection of payments into the budget of the Republic of Belarus in 2000 are:

• Profits of artificial persons (including enterprises with foreign investments and foreign artificial persons), participants of a contract on joint activities who obtained revenues from such activities before their allocation shall be subject to the tax on profits at the rate of 25 per cent.

• Payment to the budget of the value-added tax shall be made not later than 60 days from the day of shipment of products or commodities.

• The tax on immovable property collected from the cost of fixed assets imported into the territory of Belarus according to leasing contracts and other contracts made with foreign artificial and natural persons stipulating involvement of the imported property into economic turnover shall be paid irrespective of the conditions of the contract by the person who uses the imported property.

• The tax on incomes of foreign artificial persons from sources in Belarus shall be collected when the payment is calculated.

• Foreign artificial persons importing into the territory of Belarus commodities for demonstration at exhibitions, sales exhibitions or fairs, if these commodities are sold, shall pay the tax on incomes of foreign artificial persons which do not conduct activities in Belarus through the permanent representation at the rate of 10 per cent of the customs cost of the commodity declared when the commodity is presented for customs clearance under the treatment that allows the involvement of the commodities into the civil turnover.

The rates of the tax on sales of automobile fuel are established at 10 per cent. Automobile fuel subject to the said tax when it is sold includes petrol, commercial diesel fuel, and compressed and liquefied gas used as fuel for vehicles.

Consumer Protection

From 1994 the Republic of Belarus introduced the Law On Protection of Consumer Rights which defines legal, economic and social grounds for protection of consumer rights. The Law covers the relations between consumers and enterprises, organisations and institutions of all forms of property as well with entrepreneurs.

Consumers have the right to protection by the State of their interests, due quality and safety of commodities and indemnification of damage caused by sub-quality commodities, to authentic information on commodities as well as to organisation of public associations of consumers. For protection of their rights consumers have the right to appeal to courts without paying the state duty.

Customs Policy

Legal, economic and organisational grounds for the customs policy, the procedure and conditions for movement across the customs border of commodities and transport vehicles, of collection of customs fees, customs clearance and customs control are determined by the Customs Code of the Republic of Belarus. It regulates the following customs payments: the customs duty; the value-added tax; excises; duties for the issue of licences by customs authorities and resumption of validity of licences; duties for the issue of the qualification certificate of a customs clearance specialist; for customs clearance; for storage of commodities; for customs follow-up of commodities; payment for information and consultations; payment for the taking a preliminary decision; payment for the participation in customs auctions; other taxes and duties stipulated by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

Customs payments are paid directly by the declarer or another person. In exclusive cases a deferment or payment by instalments may be provided for their payment. The declarer may be the person moving commodities and transport vehicles or a customs agent.

The time for temporary import (export) of commodities is established by the customs authority of the Republic of Belarus and, as a rule, shall not exceed two years.

The ground for calculation of the customs duty, excises and customs levies shall be the customs cost of commodities and transport vehicles.

The classified list of customs duties is laid down in the Law On Customs Tariff.

For representations of foreign states and for their workers a whole range of customs preferences is provided. Diplomatic representations of foreign states may import and export commodities designed for official use without payment of customs duties and fees save for payments for storage and customs clearance of commodities. Customs preferences are in force for foreign diplomatic and consular couriers, for representatives and members of foreign state delegations, for members of diplomatic personnel, consular officials, representatives of foreign states and members of delegations going in transit across the customs territory of Belarus, for international intergovernmental organisations, etc.

Protection of Environment

The main purpose of the environmental policy of the Republic of Belarus is to assure environmentally safe conditions for people's living, rational use and protection of natural resources, elaboration of legal and economic grounds for protection of the environment in the interests of the present and future generations.

The main direction of work for implementation of the state environmental policy are: improving the environment-protection legislation with a view of creating a more precise regulatory basis in the environment-protection sphere, introducing effective economic methods of management of and control over environment protection; creating an integral system for financing environment-protection actions; improving the system of bodies of management and of environmental control; implementing a programme for ecological training of specialists and increasing ecological culture of the population; developing international co-operation and a more active use of the world experience related to the solution of environmental problems. All these provisions are fixed in The Concept of State Policy of the Republic of Belarus in the Sphere of Environment Protection (approved by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Belarus on 6 September 1995).

In conformity with the principles and recommendations of the UN Conference on Environment and Development (Rio de Janeiro, 1992) shared and fixed by the Republic of Belarus in The National Strategy of Sustainable Development (1997), it is projected to base the environment-protection activities on the conceptual prerequisite that protection of environment and rational use of natural resources potential should be considered not as a goal in itself isolated from production but rather as an inalienable part of the process of general social and economic development and that the use of nature must be effected by such methods and on such a scale that would assure equal opportunities for conservation of a favourable environment and for using natural wealth for future generations as well.

The fundamental regulatory act in the sphere of nature protection is the Law of the Republic of Belarus On Protection of the Environment (1992). This Law fixed the objectives, the principles and the legal basis for environment-protection activities, the range of natural resources, facilities and complexes to be protected, the rights and duties of citizens and public associations on environmental protection, the system of ecological information and education, the state regulation and management in this sphere, the economic mechanism for protection of the environment, the state system of observation over its condition and of cadaster account of natural resources. It defines issues of regulatory and technical as well as scientific support of environment-protection measures. The Law also stipulates the performance of ecological expertise and participation in such expertise of independent groups of specialists at the initiative of public associations and citizens. Conclusions made by a public ecological expertise are to be taken into account by authorities performing state ecological expertise. Belarus has also passed laws on protection of land, forests, water sources, atmospheric air, wildlife, etc.

The leading role in the system of state environment-protection regulators is played by environmental standards. This is first of all the permissible levels of content of harmful substances in natural environments that are reflected by maximum permissible concentrations for air and water environments and are regulated through release (discharge) limits. Quality of atmospheric air is constantly regulated for 543 pollutants, quality of water sources for 1,373 pollutants.

Great attention is paid in Belarus to international cooperation in the sphere of environmental protection. The Republic maintains permanent contacts with intergovernmental organisations: the UNEP (United Nations Environment Program), the World Health Organisation, the UN Economic Commission for Europe on Environment and Water Resources, Executive bodies of the Convention on the Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution, the International Network for Environmental Information (INFOTERRA), etc.

The Programme of Rehabilitation of Administrative Regions in Contaminated Territories

Over the past years large-scale measures have been undertaken aimed at minimising environmental and economic consequences of this serious radiation catastrophe.

Despite the set of implemented measures that included unprecedented huge volume of actions and the attained real effect, certain problems brought about by the catastrophe have not been solved, but rather aggravated in some cases.

The Chernobyl NPP incident has resulted in changes in the number and the demographic composition of population; the accumulated intellectual, professional and technical potential has been lost, collectives with long-standing history have been destroyed, the economic indicators have gone down. Migration of population has had an adverse impact on the formation of employment of population living in the contaminated regions, which is reflected by a mass-scale outflow of working population, first of all, of skilled specialists, and, as a result, deterioration of quality of labour resources on the whole. The problem has appeared connected with shortage of specialists in the regions, mainly shortage of doctors and teachers. The shortage of labour resources is most evident in the agrarian sector.

In this view, a targeted programme called The Rehabilitation of Contaminated Territories is fulfilled within the frameworks of the State Programme of the Republic of Belarus on Minimising and Overcoming the Chernobyl NPP Catastrophe. The main criterion defining opportunity of rehabilitation of contaminated territories with the contamination density for caesium-137 from 185 to 555 kBq/m2 is the prognosis for achieving individual dose exposure not exceeding the non-interference level of 1 mSv/year. Given account of this criterion, only in the Gomel and the Mogilev Oblasts there are 1,030 populated centres with almost 270,000 people (as of 1 January 1998).

The basis for solving tasks on rehabilitation of contaminated regions is the results of scientific research performed in the sphere of agricultural radiology, medicine, radiobiology, forestry, etc. With a view of effective solution of this problem, local rehabilitation programmes have been developed for the most affected regions. The said programmes are characterised by a complex approach to restoration of production and social facilities within each region taking into consideration factors of radiation-hygienic, socio-economic, demographic and psychological character.

Conservation

In conformity with the Law On Legal Regime of Territories Affected by Radioactive Contamination after the Chernobyl NPP Catastrophe the territory of the Republic of Belarus is divided into zones depending on the magnitude of the average annual effective dose, radioactive contamination of soil with radionuclides and opportunity for obtaining environmentally pure products.

The evacuation zone is scattered on the area of 450,000 hectares in 15 regions and consists of territorially isolated parts where economic activities were terminated after the evacuation of 415 populated centres in the Gomel, Mogilev and Brest Oblasts. Agricultural land of the evacuation zone is characterised by highly uneven soil covering and fertility.

Three groups of land have been differentiated depending on the radionuclide contamination density. The first group is constituted by about 67,000 hectares of agricultural land dominated by loam and sand loam soils. They may be included into agricultural use at the first stage of rehabilitation. The second group of former agricultural land with the area of about 50,000 hectares can also be used in agricultural production, however, it will require significantly greater expenditures for land reclamation. As regards land of the third group, it is not expedient to plan its inclusion into agricultural use.

The alienation zone is located on the area of about 1,700 sq.km. Population from this zone was evacuated during 1986. The zone represents a territory which is the most contaminated with radionuclides and located in a compact manner adjacent to the Chernobyl NPP (Bragin, Khoyniki and Narovlya regions of the Gomel Oblast). The main territory of the alienation zone cannot be returned into the agricultural rotation even in the long-term prospect due to a high density of contamination with long-lived radionuclides.

In the alienation (evacuation) zone, activities are allowed connected with radiation safety, prevention of transfer of radioactive substances, performance of nature-protection actions as well as of research and experimental operations.

The Belarusian sector of the 30-km zone of the Chernobyl NPP with the area of 131,300 hectares has been turned into a State Radiation Environmental Reserve. The Reserve includes land of the Bragin, Khoyniki and Narovlya regions from which people were evacuated. It includes 38,600 hectares of the evacuation zone and 45,500 hectares of the people resettlement zone (together with the area of the adjacent reserve land, the forestry stock of the Komarin, Khoyniki, Mozyr and Narovlya forestry entities and road organisations). As a result, the area of the Reserve constituted 215,400 hectares. The Reserve is divided into 3 areas (Khoyniki, Komarin and Narovlya) and 16 forestry entities. The administrative centre is located in the town of Khoyniki, the scientific part and the experimental facility are in the evacuated village of Babchin and the department of radiation and environmental monitoring at Masany Research Station on the border with Ukraine, 11 km from the power station.

The Reserve is the largest environment-protection territory of Belarus solving tasks aimed at overcoming the consequences of the catastrophe including:

• prevention of transfer of radionuclides to the nearby territories (secondary contamination);

• radiation and environmental monitoring;

• assuring protection of reserve territories and facilities located in them;

• protection of forests against fire, diseases and pests;

• conducting of actions on maintenance of the hydrological equilibrium;

• assuring the natural development of the diverse live nature;

• conducting of scientific investigation of vegetation and wildlife;

• development of technologies for possible use of contaminated land.

The territory of the Reserve is a unique test ground for scientific research and putting into practice of obtained results. Considering the fact that forests occupy about 38% of the total area, much attention is paid to fire-prevention measures. Anti-fire strips 12 and 40 m wide are arranged as well as anti-fire water reservoirs and patrol towers; aviation patrolling is implemented.