labour migration

Supporting EU unity, Bielaja Ruś congress, new unemployment policy, KGB name will remain – Belarus state press digest

Belarus strongly supports EU unity and reiterates that the Eastern Partnership should not become a dividing zone between the European Union and the East. Bielaja Ruś will not become a political party any time soon. The KGB should not...

11 December 2017

CIS leaders rating, new local politicians, gas price drop, labour migration – Belarus state press digest

Minsk approves the current pragmatic approach of the EU towards the Eastern Partnership. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka is the top rated Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) leader among Russians. The authorities expect new faces in politics after 2018 local...

29 September 2016

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Made in Belarus. By the Chinese

In the first six months of 2016, according to the Ministry of Interior 4,076 Chinese labour migrants entered Belarus. They now outnumber all other nationalities, including Ukrainians, who peaked at 3,334. The Belarusian government maintains a firm grip on the...

4 May 2016

Migration and National Security in Belarus

In March 2016 the Belarusian government approved the new national programme The National Health and Demographic Security of Belarus for the upcoming period 2016-2020. It aims "to stabilise population density and extend life expectancy". To achieve these admirable goals the...

29 October 2014

Belarus May Introduce Forced Labour to Fight Sponging

On 20 October the government announced a plan to introduce punishment for sponging ('tuneyadstvo’). It was practiced in Soviet times and it may return to Belarus again. About 10% of population able to work do not pay taxes although...

10 December 2013

Belarus Policemen Work in Russia, Su-30 Fighter Jets, Combat Robots – Belarus Security Digest

Minsk continues political manoeuvring around the issue of the establishment of a Russian air force base in Belarus. Apparently, negotiations around the military facility have been not been going well for Minsk so far. In this regard, in November, Alexsandr Lukashenka...

31 July 2013

Why Belarusians Emigrate

On 12 July, Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich proposed the introduction of a tax on non-working Belarusians.Although official statistics show that the unemployment rate stands at 0.5 per cent, the prime minister acknowledged that 445,000 Belarusians do not work - about...

27 June 2013

Viciebsk Region – the Land of Artists and Terrorists

Viciebsk city hosted one of the most famous avant-garde art schools of the 20 century counting amongst those who walked through its doors such famous names as Marc Chagall and Kazimir Malevich. But recently it has become famous as the terrorist capital of Belarus, as supposed organisers...

12 February 2013

Belarus’ Model of Economic Development May Fail to Pass the ‘Endurance Test’

The Belarusian authorities count on the country's economic growth without taking into account dangerous trends in the demographic situation and its consequences for the labour market. These conclusions appear in a study made by economists of the IPM Research...