By Yekaterina Nechaeva
Belarus’ State Innovative Development Programme for 2011-2015 plans to embrace the ‘Europanel’ method of calculating economic innovation. At present, Belarus’ index stands at just 0.3 percent, against 0.31 percent in Lithuania and 0.29 percent in Poland. Sweden boasts an index of 0.63 percent. In the ‘Europanel’ country rankings, Belarus currently occupies 25th place. According to Igor Voitov, the Chairman of the State Science and Technology Committee, by 2015, the republic should reach an index of 0.48 percent, increasing its attractiveness to investors.
Mr. Voitov notes that funding within the new programme is to rise 4.5-fold, with the number of industrial organisations of the 5th and 6th technological mode forecast to grow 2-4 times. By 2015, our positive foreign trade balance should stand at 0.5-0.6 percent of GDP.
