Chervyakov: over past six years, production of import-substituting goods almost doubled

Import substitution is one of the most important vectors of industrial policy, being currently a matter of economic and technological sovereignty for the country

“We have already achieved certain results,” said Belarus’ Economy Minister Aleksandr Chervyakov. “Over the past six years, the production of import-substituting products has almost doubled – up to $27bn. It accounts for more than 42 percent of the total industrial manufacture. Moreover, these goods are in demand not only in the domestic market: more than half is exported. First of all, our closest partners, Russia and the EAEU member states, are interested in them.”

According to the Economy Minister, integration projects are actively developing within the Union State, “A set of twenty joint initiatives has been formed, and sixteen of them – worth 80bn Russian Roubles – have already been agreed. The potential niche of import-substituting goods in Russia today is estimated at $40bn. Our task is to occupy it with Belarusian products as much as possible. We have these opportunities.”