I haven’t been to Belarus in some time but the reports coming out of the Ministry of Agriculture continue to remind me of China’s Great Leap Forward.
In China at that time local leaders were
pressured into falsely reporting ever-higher grain production figures in the
race to please superiors who then forced villages to sell more grain than they
actually had.
Estimates range from 18 to 42 million
people starved to death as a result.
The Belarusian Min of Ag are saying that they
plan to harvest 10mmt of grain and experts at the National Academy of Sciences say
the new season crop will be a record, compared to 2012.
The Min of Ag report there are
12,000 combines prepped and ready for action and they plan to buy a further 300
units; they need 210kmt of diesel to keep the combines running and the government has allocated BYR300m (USD30K) for the job.
I’m sure Minsk will be cock-a-hoop with
these glowing reports that not only confirm the righteousness of the political
and economic ideology but also the greatness of the glorious leaders.
Long live the King.