Volozhin Region
Executive Committee

Belarus is celebrating Mother's Week on 12-18 October.

Belarus' Deputy Labor and Social Security Minister Valery Kovalkov spoke about the forthcoming events as he talked to the media, BelTA has learned.

“Belarus marks Mother's Day with a series of events. This year Mother's Week will be held from 12 to 18 October. This week's events are called on to support traditions of caring attitude towards women, to strengthen family foundations, to emphasize the importance of the main person in our life - mother,” said the deputy minister.

Labor and Social Security Minister Irina Kostevich is due to meet with mothers of many children as part of a nationwide panel discussion. Ceremonies will be held to award mothers of many children with the Order of Mother. This high state award has been so far bestowed upon more than 11,000 women (682 in 2020).

For Belarus! alleys will be planted as part of the nationwide campaign “Mother's Heart – An Inexhaustible Source of Tenderness”.

The national creative contest among mass media “Strong Family - Strong State” will be reviewed and its winners will be named. A number of online themed events will be held.

Other activities as part of Mother's Week will include free legal consultations for mothers with many children, online consultations for citizens wishing to adopt a child, as well as for the families of adoptive parents.

The full plan of activities are available on the website of the Belarusian Labor and Social Security Ministry.

As of 11 October 77,220 patients previously diagnosed with COVID-19 have recovered and have been discharged from hospitals in Belarus, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian Healthcare Ministry.

Belarus has registered 83,534 cases of COVID-19 so far. A total of 2,073,930 tests have been performed in the country.

As many as 896 COVID-19 patients suffering from a number of chronic diseases have died since the infection's outbreak in Belarus.

The tax system of Belarus should be simple and understandable to all citizens, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he heard out a report on the development of the national tax system on 12 October, BelTA informs.

The meeting was attended by First Vice Premier Nikolai Snopkov, Taxes and Duties Minister Sergei Nalivaiko and Finance Minister Yuri Seliverstov.

“Given a lot has been recently said about the redistribution of authorities, some officials obviously lack them, and this is right: the government and other authorities should do more and address non-characteristic matters instead of the president. I have recently received a note: a proposal was made to redirect 71 authorities from the president to all levels of power. But this is a separate subject, this is a kind of introduction to the main issue on the agenda. I absolutely do not want to interfere with the work of the government. Nevertheless, I want to discuss the improvement of our tax system with you,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

The president remarked that the tax system is one of the key elements of the economic policy; it should be easy and understandable to people. “We have done a lot in this field. But I remember we agreed that you will prepare a new, more exquisite taxation system, that you will upgrade the existing Tax Code where necessary and where possible. Our Tax Code is rather good, but nothing is perfect and we must always strive for improvement,” the head of state stressed.

In his words, the Tax Code should be “refreshed” just like the Code on Administrative Violations and the Code of Execution Procedure on Administrative Violations. “Good job was done. Perhaps, after the recent events we will have to amend some articles. Probably, this is life. We need to do the same with the Tax Code. Of course, there will be less work, less amendments, but we need to do it,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “Of course, the government and other agencies will work on it, but I will keep this matter under control.”

According to the president, it is also necessary to continue the digitization of the tax legislation. “The prime minister of Russian (he personally worked on this matter, we are in close contact) suggested that we should look t the tax system of the Russian Federation. Some people view it as the most balanced one. But if they have made more progress in some areas, we should not be afraid to use their best practices. Moreover, if they are sharing it with us for free – software and other things. We need to facilitate the process of digitization and to make the tax system more transparent. The tax recovery should be closer to 100%,” the head of state said.

At the same time, he remarked that a lot has been already done in this area in Belarus. Aleksandr Lukashenko asked if there was an expected outcome and what solutions would be taken in the near future.

According to Sergei Nalivaiko, tax authorities generating almost 70% of the consolidated budget revenues collected Br17.7 billion worth of taxes in January-August. “The planned assignment of the consolidated budget has been fulfilled by 96.5%. The shortage made up Br700 million. This is mostly attributed to the epidemiological situation in the world,” the minister explained.

“If we manage to keep this level, it will be okay. We need to do our best to reduce the shortage a little bit, although it will not be easy. You see that the second wave has started in the world. And our economy is export oriented, we depend on it. We need at least to maintain these parameters,” the president said.

According to the Taxes and Duties Ministry, the digitization of the tax system provides for the formation of the unified system of intellectual data processing, the organization of the database of revenues and incomes of individuals, as well as the further development of existing information systems of tax bodies and the expansion of the spectrum of electronic and digital services.

In particular, it is planned to digitize information and documents of taxpayers in the information resources of the Taxes and Duties Ministry and in other sources of public administration bodies. Then it will be possible to introduce an intellectual system of risk analysis in taxation.

In the process of developing a database of income and spending of individuals tax bodies will optimize and reduce the number of records which taxpayers submit to government bodies; the process of registering such reports will be automated. Taxpayers will be able to use a contactless network of services. New electronic services will be available in the taxpayer's account.

According to the initiators of the digitization process, it will help make the system of paying taxes simpler, more transparent and user-friendly.

Proper conditions for the work of the IT industry have been enabled in Belarus.

Prerequisites for further growth are also available. Director of the IT company PandaDoc Dmitry Rabtsevich made the statement on the air of the TV channel Belarus One as he commented on results of the conversation with Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko in the pretrial detention center of the State Security Committee (KGB), BelTA has learned.

Dmitry Rabtsevich believes that all the conditions for paying normal salaries, for growing, and for building the future together are available in Belarus' Hi-Tech Park.

The executive said: “It seems to me an IT country has been built: there is a foothold, knowledge, skills of the personnel, there are good conditions, in particular, the Digital Economy Development Ordinance and tax preferences, that allow the industry to develop in the future the way it develops now. All the conditions have been enabled for doing business. The Digital Economy Development Ordinance may be amended.”

Dmitry Rabtsevich also admitted he had been surprised by Aleksandr Lukashenko's visit to the KGB pretrial detention center. “The format of the conversation was not intensive, it was simple. The atmosphere was supposed to shape a dialogue about a way out of the situation, to air ideas regarding amendments to the constitutional system. A dialogue took place,” he specified. He mentioned future economic development as one of the key matters that were also discussed.

“I am going to work and develop. It is probably the main message I've come to realize,” he concluded.

The Belarusian transport company Minsktrans cancels daily bus service to Riga, BelTA learned from the company's website.

“The Belarusian transport company Minsktrans cancels the international bus service Minsk-Riga en route to Minsk at 22.00 (from 9 October) and to Riga at 22.00 (from 10 October),” the company said.

Minsktrans announces daily bus service Minsk-Vilnius, with departure from Minsk at 22.00 (from 10 to 31 October), and from Vilnius at 2.50 (from 11 October to 1 November).

All creative segments of society need to be involved in the work on the amendment of the Constitution, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a government meeting to discuss topical issues on 9 October, BelTA has learned.

According to the head of state, even within the framework of the current Constitution there is a gradual transfer of some powers from the president to the government and governors. For example, these are matters concerning methods and forms of management and land issues.

Speaking about the preparation of amendments to the Constitution, Aleksandr Lukashenko said that this process should be as close to ordinary citizens as possible. For this purpose, the head of state instructed to set up dialogue platforms in the regions. “Today the Parliament is collecting proposals on the Constitution. Let MPs collect these proposals from the people. This work, however, will not yield a similar result as the dialogue that you are developing in the regions. Invite different people to join the dialogue. You should listen to and hear different points of view. When we study these issues related to the Constitution, governance, local government, and economy, we will discuss them here, in the center, and submit them to the All-Belarusian People's Congress. This is the formula we should follow. All creative segments of society will be included in this work. This work is already underway,” the Belarusian leader said.

Aleksandr Lukashenko also emphasized the important role of the All-Belarusian People's Congress in the discussion of the constitutional reform. “The first stage where we should inform the population on our work in this direction is the All-Belarusian People's Congress. We need to think how we are going to organize it: first of all, to set up an organizing committee and hold elections to the All-Belarusian People's Congress, decide on the number, proceeding from the already accumulated experience,” the president said.

The Belarusian Emergencies Ministry will purchase machinery and equipment in line with the EU technical assistance project, First Deputy Emergencies Minister Aleksandr Khudoleyev told journalists, BelTA has learned.

“Today we are officially launching the international technical assistance project Latvia-Lithuania-Belarus. It actually kicked off in 2019 and will run through 2021. The project provides for purchasing equipment for rapid response to various emergencies related to climate change,” Aleksandr Khudoleyev said. “This is a global problem. The world is witnessing considerable climate change, which leads to losses and additional expenses,” he added.

The project was initiated by Belarus. “We would like to thank our colleagues from Latvia and Lithuania for their support in the organization and implementation of the project. This will help us gain the necessary experience in emergency response and, of course, enhance cross-border cooperation with our colleagues and friends. The project also provides for holding cross-border drills,” Aleksandr Khudoleyev noted. “The budget of the project is more than €1 million. These funds will be spent on machinery and rescue equipment for Belarus and other participants of the project. This includes vehicles with enhanced cross-country capacity that can access and work in hard-to-reach places and rescue equipment for work in confined areas and in severe and extreme weather conditions,” he added.

The international technical assistance project “ClimaAdapt: Capacity Improvement in Emergency Preparedness and Response through Climate Adaptation Actions” is financed in line with the 2014-2020 European Neighborhood Instrument Cross-border Cooperation Latvia-Lithuania-Belarus Program. The project was registered at the Belarusian Economy Ministry in October 2019 and is set to run in 2019-2021.

The lead beneficiary of the international technical assistance is the National Special Response Team of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry. The total budget is €1,096,050.75, €986,445.68 of which is allocated by the European Union.

The project is meant to intensify the Belarusian-Latvian cooperation in emergencies preparedness and response.

The project is aimed at dealing with the increased number of natural disasters and reducing their social and economic impact. It is almost impossible to control natural disasters, but the implementation of the project by Belarus and Latvia will help create safer conditions for the population by improving emergency response.

In line with the project, Belarus and Latvia intend to develop a methodology for rescue services on response to natural disasters in difficult climatic conditions. The countries will also hold a joint cross-border exercise at the training range of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry and organize seminars and visits for representatives of rescue services. Moreover, plans are in place to raise awareness of how to stay safe in a natural disaster and improve the technological capacity of Belarusian and Latvian rescue services in mitigating the negative impact of climate change.

Photos by Andrei Pokumeiko

The Belarusian air carrier Belavia has extended suspension of air travel to Larnaca till 24 October, BelTA learned from the website of the airline.

Belavia will not fly to Riga, Tallinn, and Budapest till 24 October, to all destinations in Georgia till 31 October, and to Ashgabat till 1 November. Flights to Russia's Voronezh, Kazan, and Nizhny Novgorod have been suspended till 24 October.

Customers who purchased tickets for these travel dates will be able to apply for a refund or to reschedule their flights till 30 March 2021. Tickets can be refunded and flights can be rescheduled at company's offices and customer service centers.

Belarus' strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and the experience it has gained are valuable for the entire world, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a meeting to discuss the preparedness of the healthcare system to confront the rise in the incidence of COVID-19 and seasonal respiratory diseases, BelTA has learned.

Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that during the peak of the disease in the spring Belarus' healthcare providers came up with good treatment solutions to tackle coronavirus. “The experience we have gained is invaluable. And the path that we chose is also invaluable for the whole world today,” the president said. “Indeed, no one will thank you for the path we have gone down, for the methods we used to treat our people, for not isolating them or imposing a lockdown, for encouraging people to be in the fresh air. However, if you go to a pharmacy or a store, be sure to take a mask with you,” the president said.

The head of state noted: today other countries have chosen a similar path to follow as they have canceled quarantine measures. “Thus, we have gained invaluable experience of combating coronavirus and it must be used today,” he stressed. Aleksandr Lukashenko added that the Healthcare Ministry should draft its own recommendations, but at the same time it is necessary to refrain from going into extremes. “Let's not recommend what is impossible to implement,” the president said.

“I want to make my position clear: today I have no plans to isolate the country and impose a lockdown. Had we done it in February, March or April, we would have faced the consequences: we would not have jobs, we would deliver a heavy blow on the economy, we would have no salaries to pay. And again, this is not a choice between bad and completely bad or bad and good: life does not put up to such a test today,” Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed.

Minsk region has the highest demand for suburban real estate.

About 450 transactions are made per year. This is followed by Slutsk, Volozhin and Borisov regions. Least of all transactions are made in Gomel region, and the lowest prices for suburban real estate are also noted here.

Veronika Solovyova, head of the appraisal department of the National Cadastral Agency: "The leader is the Minsk region, specifically the Minsk region. The largest number of transactions is carried out here. The average annual number of transactions over the past 4 years amounted to 450 transactions per year (this is a lot) and about 350 auctions For comparison, the nearest districts that catch up with the Minsk region in terms of the number of transactions are all in the range from 250 to 290 transactions. "

Note that recently, when choosing suburban real estate, buyers most often pay attention to the presence near a forest and a reservoir.