Исследовательский Центр ИПМ
Kasrtyčnicki Ekanamičny Forum

Small and medium-sized business development trends in Belarus

The development of small and medium business sector is considered as one of the instruments aimed at solving problems of structural changes in Belarusian economy. It’s expected, that small business can partly replace large state enterprise in creating workplaces and at the expense of bigger efficiency can increase competitiveness of Belarusian production in foreign markets. But the dynamic of macroeconomic indicators in small and medium business sector of recent years considers about decrease of its role in Belarusian economy. The survey results of small and medium businesses show the deterioration of enterprises’ economic situation. To a large extent this is predetermined by falling population income and it stresses the small and medium business’ orientation to demand satisfaction from the side of households. Besides the economic crisis changes in regulatory climate also have negative influence on position of small and medium business sector. In such conditions most of enterprises are concentrated on the problem of preservation of their business and provides the costs optimization, including reducing employment. These tendencies mark that existing small and medium business sector is not ready to solve in crisis conditions the unemployment problem arising in the case of restructuring of state enterprises. It’s necessary that the climate contributed to development of private economic sector was created preliminarily.