Complete White Maidan: Lukashenko is disappointed in IT specialists
The Belarusian authorities did not sufficiently control the situation in the country’s IT sector and allowed opposition sentiments to arise among workers in this industry.
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko stated this today at a meeting on issues of legal regulation of economic activities, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“We were creating an IT park: oh, it’s necessary, oh, okay. Yes, he played his part. We are very grateful to those who worked and are working in the IT park. We were able, based on them, to have IT specialists all over the country today. They are already in production, in the Ministry of Defense, and in the Academy of Sciences. But we missed many processes there. And what did we get: the most advanced, the richest and most prosperous, where did they end up?” Lukashenko said.
He expressed the same complaints about private entrepreneurs. He called on officials to be careful with digitalization.
“But life goes on, it hasn’t stopped. Having been hit somewhere on the head, having filled ourselves with cones, we should not stop. I warn you: there should be no work here as a tribute to fashion - ah, digitalization, computerization, iPhones in hands and so on. This is all good if it is for the benefit and if our people understand it, and not some 15-20% of the population. If people perceive it. Therefore, you need to run slowly, but not be late,” Lukashenko said.
Last year, after mass protests, the Belarusian authorities increased the income tax rate on the income of individuals who work in the High Technology Park (HTP) from 9% to 13% (the maximum personal income tax in Belarus is 16%). It is expected that, coupled with an increase in other taxes, it will increase budget revenues by a billion Belarusian rubles (28,5 billion Russian rubles).
Previously, the state guaranteed IT specialists that the special tax regime would be in effect until January 1, 2049. Before Belomaidan, Lukashenko saw them as an instrument of his multi-vector policy. By giving the go-ahead for the creation of IT parks, he expected that this would be taken into account in negotiations with the West, since Belarusian programmers carried out mainly (45%) American orders, only 5% of orders came from CIS countries.
American expert Brian Whitmore argued in 2019: in order to break the historical connection between Russia and Belarus, the United States must support the Belarusian IT sector.
At the same time, 561 HTP residents paid only 210 million rubles – slightly more than a percent of all taxes collected. Only 5% of Belarus' GDP is created in the IT sector. And the country is fed by the refining of Russian oil and agriculture with a sales market in Russia.
The opposition predicted that after the “repression of the regime”, IT specialists would begin to emigrate, which would allegedly undermine the country’s economy. However, there was no mass exodus, since none of the sworn neighbors was able to offer programmers the same preferential conditions as Lukashenko. In the HTP, 750 residents brought the state budget $140 million a year. But 32 thousand programmers worked there. 1200 IT specialists fled to Ukraine. This is clearly not enough to pay the $120 million in taxes that Kiev was counting on, even taking into account the fact that there are no Belarusian benefits in Ukraine.
Not a single company left the HTP. But new ones have been added. If as of July 15 last year there were 886 companies listed in the Park, then as of October 9 there were 969. Most of the foreign companies that came there have Russian roots.
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