USAID Europe and Eurasia: Belarus

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USAID Information:

USAID Country Page
More Stories from Belarus
FY 2009 Congressional Budget Justification
Selected Reports from the USAID Document Database
Belarus Country Profile (pdf,53kb)

External Links:

U.S. State Department Background Notes
CIA World Factbook

Key Resources:

U.S. Government Assistance to and Cooperative Activities with Eurasia

belarus.usaid.gov
Country Program Officer: Chuck Howell

USAID/Minsk
Department of State
Washington, DC 20521-7010
Tel: 380-44-537-4600
Fax: 375-17-211-3032

Overview

The U.S. has a national interest in a free and peaceful Europe, which must include a stable, democratic and market-oriented Belarus. Now that the European Union shares a border with Belarus, it is vulnerable to potential political and economic instability across that border. Belarus’ current president has stifled independent media and political opposition, and has carried out questionable economic policies. Structural reforms and privatization remain on the agenda, and recently some steps were taken to liberalize the economy and continue privatization. Belarus held parliamentary elections in September 2008. The fact that no opposition candidates were elected to the Parliament underscores that the Government of Belarus (GoB) will not treat civil society any differently than it has for the last fifteen years. Belarus continues to be a difficult environment for non-governmental organizations (NGOs), opposition parties, and free media. The country retains the potential to contribute to and benefit from regional economic development, but it needs to implement democratic and market reforms. For this reason, USAID focuses on involving citizens in the democratic process.

Belarus in Action

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