Agriculture

Agricultural production accounts for about 6-7% of the country’s GDP. About 9% of the people employed in the national economy work in the agricultural industry.

Belarusian companies almost fully satisfy the needs of the domestic food market. Food import accounts for less than 10% of the total consumption.

About 23.4% of the world’s flax crops are grown in Belarus. Belarus is in the top five countries among the world’s 23 flax fiber manufacturers.

Belarus is one of the world leaders in terms of per capita production of milk in the world and is placed higher than such countries as the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the USA, China. The per capita production of milk in Belarus has reached 752kg.

Belarus is in the top 15 exporters of dairy products in the world. Belarus is in the top five exporters of buttermilk, youghurt, kefir, top seven exporters of butter, top eight exporters of milk whey, milk, skimmed and dried cream.

Belarus has left behind such countries as the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the USA, China in the terms of per capita production of meat (123kg). The production of meat per capita in Belarus is two times higher than in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and China.

Belarus is in the top 25 exporters of meat. It is the 14th biggest exporter of cooled beef, the 8th exporter of frozen beef, and the 16th exporter of poultry, 

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Belarus is the 3rd biggest producer of flax fiber, the 5th producer of cranberries, the 7th producer of rye, the 8th producer of triticale, the 13th producer of sugar beet, the 16th producer of strawberries.

Transport and logistics

Belarus is a major transport artery in Eurasia because of its geographical location. The country is located at the crossroads of major transport routes between Eastern Europe and the East, regions of the Black Sea with the Baltic countries. Every year over 100 million tonnes of European cargoes is transported via Belarus. About 90% of the cargoes is transported between Russia and the European Union. Transit of goods via Belarus is fast and secure. Transport services are rendered by railway, automobile, air, inland water, and pipeline transport operators.

Foreign trade

The diversity of products made in Belarus has determined the country’s focus on foreign markets.

Belarus is a developed country with open economy. About 60% of products made here are exported.

The Republic of Belarus has a good reputation on the global market of farm produce and foodstuffs. Belarus’ export of farm produce and foodstuffs has exceeded $4 billion in the past two years. The share of such products in the country’s export increased to 17.7% in 2016.

Belarus trades with virtually all countries across the globe. Major trade partners are Russia (51.3% of Belarus’ trade turnover in 2016), Ukraine (7.5%), China (5.1%), Germany (4.5%), Poland (3.9%), the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (2.4%), the Netherlands (2.2%), Lithuania (2%), Turkey (1.6%), Italy (1.3%), the United States of America (1.3%).

Belarus is now strengthening its position on the global services market. The export of services has increased more than 1.4 times from the level of 2010.

Computer services have been increasingly popular. Their export has risen more than four times in comparison with the level of 2010. The export of these services almost reached $1 billion in 2016, their share in the country’s export grew from 4.5% to 14%.

The Republic of Belarus is one of the world’s leaders in terms of the IT services export per capita. There are six IT companies with Belarusian offices in the 2017 Global Outsourcing 100 rankings. Such Belarusian-made products as Viber and World of Tank are very popular.

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