zondag 26 februari 2012

The economy of Belarus - Week 1 - Anou Christiaens

Hello everyone!

We have started our journey in Belarus. It’s very beautiful here!

Today I’m going to tell you something more about the economy of Belarus. The economy here is not as bad as I thought. They have not been affected as much by the global economic crisis. However, many of the countries that work with Belarus have been badly affected by the global economic crisis. This is clearly noticeable because of the prices of some products. Belarus is a big manufacturer of wheat, potatoes, flax, etc. Those products aren’t that expensive because they produce it themselves. The products that they import from other countries are the most expensive, because those countries have been affected more. We went to a restaurant and it was very clear that some prices were elevated. I paid 30 euros for just spaghetti and a glass of water! I was shocked by that amount!

Yesterday, we took a tour around Minsk, which Romina already mentioned. On our way to Minsk, I was immediately taken by the amount of farms. Almost every 500 meter, there was a farm. It became very clear to me that a lot of people work in the agrarian territory. So I concluded that farms are very important for the economy of Belarus because a lot of people work on a farm. When I asked our guide, she told me that I had made the right conclusion. She informed me that half of the working population works in the agrarian territory. That’s a lot!

During that same tour, I saw that there were not a lot of people who live in bad circumstances. There were a lot of big houses, farms, … I didn’t see one person who begged for money or lived in a box on the street. Our guide explained that the standard of living for the population has been improved due to the sustained growth in the economy over the recent years.

That was it for today! Keep reading my blog because there are a lot of interesting things that will follow! Talk to you soon!

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