Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 18 January (BelTA) – Belarus is on track for stable economic growth, Georgy Grits, Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Scientific and Industrial Association, said during an online video-briefing at the national press center on 17 January, BelTA has learned.

“The liberalization of business environment and the identification of priority economic sectors create confidence that Belarus is on track for sustainable growth and is making its return to the list of countries with a competitive economy,” said Georgy Grits.

In his words, the country’s goals for 2018 are to make the economic growth more sustainable and find new points for growth. All the necessary prerequisites were created last year. These are, according to Georgy Grits, the adoption of Decree No.7, and also other documents as part of doing business liberalization efforts. “The role of the state has been liberalized from the point of view of influence on business. Decree No.7 has covered both big and small business. The responsibility of business, including business owners and top managers, has also increased, which is a global trend,” he explained.

According to him, Decree No.8 is also a key document, which has dramatically changed the role and importance of the IT industry. “We have defined a new promising segment of development not only for the midterm, but also for a long-term perspective. Previously, it was machine building and agriculture, which are now being integrated into the ‘e-Belarus’ trend,” said Georgy Grits.

Georgy Grits also expressed his attitude to cryptocurrency. “I view bitcoins as an element of investment with relatively high risks, but this is a global trend. I will set an example of Japan, the home of cryptocurrency. According to the recent estimates by Japanese experts, the turnover of cryptocurrency, and it is an official payment means there, adds 0.2% to the economy, which is the GDP of hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars,” he stated.