{"id":11411,"date":"2022-05-09T13:29:22","date_gmt":"2022-05-09T10:29:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/longreads\/belarusian-officials-overestimate-benefits-of-import-substitution\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"belarusian-officials-overestimate-benefits-of-import-substitution","status":"publish","type":"longreads","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/","title":{"rendered":"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n <span>By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t * Reproduction is allowed\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However, Belarus will not be able to manufacture all the goods that it imported before Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, Belarusian analysts say.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Skepticism about government\u2019s proposals<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Raman Halo\u016d\u010danka, Belarus\u2019 prime minister, last month urged small and medium-sized businesses to join big enterprises in a government-funded import-substitution drive. He said that companies involved would be given access to low-interest loans from the Development Bank. He said that businesses could contact him directly for support in obtaining loans.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t One business leader, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the matter freely, expressed skepticism about the government\u2019s general readiness to help small and medium-sized businesses. The source noted that the government has not yet adopted a coherent business liberalization package and denied assistance to private companies during the COVID-19 pandemic.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t The source noted that few companies are likely to apply of Development Bank loans because businesses generally distrust state-owned institutions.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Concern about quality, price<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Some industries have seen a rise in demand for Belarusian-made goods, said Lie\u016d \u0139vo\u016dski, of the Belarusian Economic Research and Outreach Center.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t \u201cImported goods are not accessible because of restrictions, so people choose similar goods that are affordable and cheaper. If such goods are offered by Belarusian manufacturers, demand rises,\u201d he told The Viewer.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t But he added that not all goods can be substituted, while some substitutes are likely to be of lower quality. For instance, he said, Belarus can produce potatoes and buckwheat, while it cannot manufacture top quality cheese.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t The import substitution policy will drive up prices because new manufacturing facilities require investment, he said.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Cash and people needed<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Interwoven supply chains wrapped around the globe cannot be undone overnight, \u0139vo\u016dski said.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t \u201cA company may need ball bearings with certain characteristics. Since the product is very specific and demand for it is not high, every country does not need a plant to manufacture it; one plant is enough for all consumers around the world. If the plant stops supplying goods, you have to build your own plant to produce a small quantity of ball bearings. You spend $1000 to purchase bearings, and $1 million to build the plant,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t \u201cBelarus does not have structural unemployment and does not have surplus labor force waiting for a new plant to be built,\u201d he added.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Many companies may consider risks associated with investment in import-substitution facilities, which may not pay back if sanctions are lifted, said the expert, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Import substitution makes you poorer<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Import substitution makes countries poorer, \u0139vo\u016dski said. \u201cIf Belarus could produce goods that it imported from the West, it would have done so before the imposition of sanctions . . . It cannot replace goods that it imported before sanctions with better and cheaper goods. Quality will be worse and goods will be more expensive.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Import substitution can help Belarus satisfy basic needs. \u201cBut I doubt that a Belarusian plant can build the type of machines that Western companies manufactured 20 years ago,\u201d he said, noting that the sanctions are unlikely to bring about prosperity, as officials say.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However, Belarus will not be able to manufacture all the goods that it imported before Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, Belarusian analysts say. Skepticism about government\u2019s proposals Raman Halo\u016d\u010danka, Belarus\u2019 prime minister, last month urged small and medium-sized [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[22],"class_list":["post-11411","longreads","type-longreads","status-publish","hentry","rubric-theviewer"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However,\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution | Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However,\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-24T20:29:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Pozirk_online\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\"},\"headline\":\"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-09T10:29:22+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-24T20:29:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\"},\"wordCount\":539,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\",\"name\":\"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution | Pozirk\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-09T10:29:22+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-24T20:29:13+00:00\",\"description\":\"By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However,\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Pozirk\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Pozirk\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Pozirk\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/Pozirk_online\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution | Pozirk","description":"By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However,","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution | Pozirk","og_description":"By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However,","og_url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/","og_site_name":"Pozirk","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/","article_modified_time":"2026-02-24T20:29:13+00:00","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@Pozirk_online","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/"},"headline":"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution","datePublished":"2022-05-09T10:29:22+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/"},"wordCount":539,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization"},"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/","name":"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution | Pozirk","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website"},"datePublished":"2022-05-09T10:29:22+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13+00:00","description":"By Vo\u013aha Tama\u0161e\u016dskaja * Reproduction is allowed Western sanctions have prompted officials to consider additional import substitution measures. However,","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11411\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Belarusian officials overestimate benefits of import substitution"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/","name":"Pozirk","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization","name":"Pozirk","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Pozirk"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/","https:\/\/x.com\/Pozirk_online"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/longreads\/11411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/longreads"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/longreads"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"rubric","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rubric?post=11411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}