Since the mid-2000s, the fertility rate in Belarus was increasing and staying higher than optimistic forecasts of the UN. However, since 2017 the trend has turned around without any negative shocks from the economy or demographic and social policy. This discussion paper analyzes what happens to Belarusian fertility, why this happens and how social policy affects fertility.

This paper is a part of the research about attitudes of Belarusians to the system of social protection. The research is carried out by the IPM Research Center together with BEROC. It is based on ten focus groups conducted in June 2019.

The paper presents the results of the enterprises surveys regarding the barriers to the development of the circular economy. The analysis has revealed that in general the enterprises surveyed positively evaluate the existing legislation in Belarus that regulates issues concerning waste management, but identify a number of other significant barriers.

This paper presents an analysis of the survey results on how enterprises in Belarus manage their waste and use secondary raw materials. It was examined whether an effectiveness of waste management depends on the form of the enterprise ownership.

The paper presents the survey results analysis on waste management and factors affecting the possibility of using waste to make a new products. A relation between the size of the enterprise, the amount of waste and the way it was handled has been studied.

By mid-2019, a period of recovery growth has been accomplished and the national economy enters a new stage of development. This policy paper sums up and analyzes the results of the recovery growth period. The paper argues that the results are contradictory.