Strategic projects are the pillars of Belarus' further development, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at the government conference held on 20 October to discuss the improvement of the system of planning and overseeing the implementation of strategic projects, BelTA has learned.

According to the head of state, strategic projects can be implemented across various industries. For example, mechanical engineering and agriculture will benefit from projects to scale up technological processes. “We can and we should become more sophisticated in every area. We have technologies, competences, professionals who know what to do,” noted Aleksandr Lukashenko.

The president cited the construction of Svetlogorsk Pulp and Board Mill as a case in point. Initial plans provided for building a facility to make cellulose for export. However, what happened in reality was that Belarus sold semi-finished products to other countries, while importing finished goods made from them. Therefore, upon the instruction of the head of state, the Svetlogorsk company expanded its operations and started making products with a greater added value in order to sell them in Belarus and other markets.

“As far as I understand, the construction of this workshop is on the homestretch now?” Aleksandr Lukashenko asked the Gomel Oblast governor.

“It is,” Ivan Krupko confirmed.

“And no matter how difficult it might be, we will equip it with technological equipment,” the president added. “Here is an example of a small strategic project that was implemented within about 1.5-2 years. We are implementing this project, scaling up what we have today. And this is the basis for our further development,” Aleksandr Lukashenko remarked.

Another area of work is the construction of production facilities from scratch. One of them was the Belarusian nuclear power plant and Belarusian National Biotechnology Corporation.

“These are strategic projects that will elevate the country two or three levels about of what it is now. This is something new. And we need to move in this direction if we want to prove in practice that we are smart and advanced. We need to do it and we will benefit from doing it,” said the head of state.