The development strategy of Belarus is based on such adopted fundamental documents as: the National Strategy for Sustainable Development of the Republic of Belarus (Minsk, 1997); Concept of socio-economic development of the Republic of Belarus until 2015 (Minsk, 1998); The main directions of socio-economic development of the country for the period up to 2010 (Minsk, 2000); Program of socio-economic development of the Republic of Belarus for 2001-2005 (Minsk, 2001).
The development strategy of Belarus assumes the formation of a strong effective legal state in the field of improving statehood, capable of ensuring the creation of the necessary conditions and active state support for large-scale measures to achieve long-term guidelines for socio-economic development; in the field of social development – a gradual transition to a post-industrial society with mainly V and VI technological modes, developed relations social partnership, a rational system for the formation of a comprehensively developed person, physically healthy, spiritually rich, receptive to scientific and technical innovations; in the field of economics – the creation of a socially-oriented market economy, highly efficient, with adequate market infrastructure, effective mechanisms of state and market regulation, ensuring expanded reproduction and stimulating highly productive labor. Such an economy is able to ensure a high level of well-being of conscientiously working members of society, constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens, equality of all forms of ownership, guarantees of inviolability and its use in the interests of the individual and society, as well as an effective system of social protection of disabled and other socially vulnerable groups of the population.
The Belarusian model of socio-economic development takes into account the history of the country, the traditions of the people, its national character, which is distinguished by a keen sense of human solidarity, collectivism and mutual assistance, and excludes such components of the market economy as egocentrism, the presence of unemployment, and a sharp property differentiation of the population.
The country’s development strategy provides for the modernization of the economy and society, based on modern trends in world economic development processes, a multi-vector orientation of foreign economic activity in accordance with the interests of the country while maintaining the sovereignty of the state. It is based on a rational combination of the regulatory functions of the state in ensuring favorable economic conditions, including financial and social stability, with the development of private initiative and an effective market mechanism for management. It provides for the active integration of Belarus into the world community, and above all with Russia and other CIS countries, with which socio-economic and cultural ties have historically developed, as well as with foreign countries while protecting domestic interests.
Belarus has chosen such a development strategy because it meets the interests and specifics of the country, ensures its national security, offers a solution to the most complex problems with lower socio-economic and environmental costs, and corresponds to the trends of world development.
The first five years of the XXI century should be the most important stage in the implementation of the strategic goal of the socio-economic development of the country – improving the well-being of the people and bringing it closer to the level of economically developed European states.
The main objectives of the socio-economic development of Belarus for 2001–2005 are:
creation of macroeconomic conditions for sustainable socio-economic development and growth of efficiency of the real sector of the economy, primarily on the basis of improving its qualitative parameters; technical re-equipment and modernization of the economy, restructuring of enterprises on the basis of the introduction of modern technologies, machines and equipment; creation of the necessary conditions for the improvement of the population’s health, raising the level of its education and culture on the basis of the priority development of healthcare, education, culture, sports and tourism; reduction of the tax burden on commodity producers and the population; bringing by the end of the five-year period the average monthly wage of workers in the national economy to a level equivalent to $250 per month. USA; raising the level of old-age pensions to 48%, scholarships – up to 25-30% of the average salary in the national economy; improvement of the environmental situation, implementation of effective measures to overcome the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster; ensuring the comprehensiveness of the socio-economic development of regions, districts and cities, stabilizing the situation in problem regions.
Based on the continuity of the directions of economic development and the role of the most important factors in achieving socio-economic goals for the next five years, the following priorities have been identified:
formation of an effective health care system; intensification of innovation and investment activities; increasing exports of goods and services; development of the agro-industrial complex and related industries; further development of housing construction on an emission-free basis with maximum use of extrabudgetary sources of financing; development of the agro-industrial complex and related industries.
The main means of achieving the set goals and implementing priorities are:
financial recovery of the economy, improvement of the balance of payments and increase of foreign exchange reserves; intensification of structural restructuring of the economy on the basis of specialization, cooperation and integration of large and small enterprises, accelerated development of knowledge-intensive, resource-saving industries and industries, the service sector; state support for innovations and the most important investment projects that increase the competitiveness of the economy of the republic and its regions, social progress; development of a more effective mechanism for investing in the economy, including an increase in the volume of foreign direct investment and loans, a new depreciation policy, the concentration of resources in priority areas; introduction of an effective mechanism for investing in the economy, including an increase in the volume of foreign direct investment and loans, a new depreciation policy, the concentration of resources in priority areas; further integration of Belarus into the system of international division of labor, the formation of effective interstate and interregional financial and industrial groups within the framework of the Union State of Belarus and Russia, the CIS, TNCs and other international integration entities; accelerated development of institutions of extra-budgetary financing of housing construction – the system of construction savings and savings, mortgage lending; expansion of state support for entrepreneurship, small and medium-sized businesses, creation of conditions for attracting private capital; formation of a competitive environment and an effective institutional framework for economic activity; ensuring the economic security of the country.
The development of the country’s economy will take place under the influence of a combination of external and internal factors on socio-economic processes, the degree and types of which cannot be foreseen. With this in mind, the Programme for the Socio-Economic Development of the Republic of Belarus for 2001-2005 presents a targeted option that is actively mobilizing. It proceeds from the need to significantly improve the standard of living of the people, provides for the achievement of tense macroeconomic parameters, which corresponds to the theory of indicative and strategic planning.