MINSK, 5 January (BelTA) – Quality control of Belarusian goods and services will be significantly toughened, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a meeting to discuss plans to improve quality in 2024 and the Quality Mark of the Republic of Belarus, BelTA has learned.
Prior to the meeting at the Palace of Independence, the head of state visited a themed exhibition “Quality Mark: Tradition of the Past and Present.” Heads and veteran workers of Belarusian enterprises showcased domestic products that received the USSR Quality Mark award back in the Soviet Union, as well as products applying for Belarus’ State Quality Mark in 2024. The products on display represent a broad range of industries - from food production to mechanical engineering.
“Our first working meeting this year at the presidential level is dedicated to the Year of Quality. We have set an ambitious goal: to bring quality control of goods and services, the quality of life in the country to a higher level. Belarus can be proud of its high-quality goods, but to have an edge and to be able to compete with the world’s best products, we need to take it up a notch, you need to earn this quality mark,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
In their pursuit of a higher quality, Belarusians have something to build on, the president emphasized.
Firstly, these are traditions - the republic has preserved the best of what the Soviet Union had.
“This historical period gave a start to our national development,” the head of state remarked. “Now you understand why (and I was criticized for that) I ‘cling’ to that Soviet time: had there not been that Soviet period, there would not have been the most advanced products. It’s easier to destroy everything, but in this case, what would we have to lean on to develop new, cutting-edge products? We would not have had this foundation. Smart people preserve and build on the things that have been created by previous generations. So we did,” the head of state noted.
“The BSSR was, by the way, one of the most technologically advanced and developed economies among the Soviet Union republics. Having survived the turbulent years of the 1990s, it was not easy for us to preserve the quality standards set by the Soviet people, but we were able to do it,” the Belarusian president said. “The situation was so dire that there was simply no other way but to press ahead. We held out. Today we are developing the most advanced models of equipment. But I should say frankly: the quality still needs to be better. Our competitors are at hour heels. And everything that we make in Belarus is produced in dozens of countries around the world,” the head of state remarked.
Secondly, Belarus has built an image of a country that has adopted the best Soviet practices. And the way Belarusians cope with modern challenges shows that the decision to do it made a lot of sense and was right, the president noted.
“Thirdly, we see an increasing demand for a welfare state. And not only in the post-Soviet space, but all over the world. The things that come with a welfare state are an important factor determining the quality of people’s lives: they are about moral values, prosperity, social justice. Everything is interconnected. Therefore, when we talk about quality and plans, we wait for something (of course, a respective program will be drafted), however, there is no need to wait for anything. If someone does not know where to start, start with yourself: come to your work on time and do your job to the best of your ability. Everyone here knows how to do it,” said Aleksandr Lukashenko.
