The Minsk Oblast is located in the central part of the Republic of Belarus. It includes 22 districts. The Oblast population is 1,464,800 people. The administration centre of the Oblast is the capital of the Republic of Belarus Minsk.

The territory of the Oblast is 39,900 square kilometres (19.2 % of the total territory of Belarus). In the east the Minsk Oblast borders on the Mogilev Oblast, in the north – on the Vitebsk Oblast, in the west – on the Grodno Oblast, in the south-west – on the Brest Oblast, in the south – on the Gomel Oblast. This is the only Oblast in Belarus which has no borders with other countries. Yet, the Oblast has good opportunities for the development of economic ties with other countries since all the major transport corridors pass via it.

Today the Minsk Oblast is one of the most developed areas of Belarus. Favourable geographic position and natural resources foster the socioeconomic development of the Oblast.

The Minsk Oblast industry is diverse, with automobile engineering, chemical and petrochemical industries account for the greatest share of the industrial output. The Oblast also has building materials manufactures, furniture-making factories and companies of light industry. In addition, companies processing agricultural products have been rapidly developing in the Minsk Oblast. The Oblast is leading in production of foodstuffs, flour, cereals and mixed fodder.

The major manufacturing centres are the towns of Soligorsk, Borisov, Zhodino, Slutsk, and Molodechno. The leading manufactures are Belaruskali (potassium fertilizers), BelAZ (large and small-capacity trucks, quarry equipment), Molodechno Hardware Plant, Borisov Avtogidrousilitel, Borisov Plant of Car-and-Tractor Electric Systems, Borisov Meat Processing Plant, Slutsk Meat-processing Plant, Slutsk Sugar Refining Plant, Gorodeya Sugar Factory.

The Minsk Oblast is the largest agricultural area of Belarus. The majority of districts of the Oblast are involved in cattle breeding and cultivation of grain, potatoes, beetroots and flax. Agricultural companies located in the close vicinity of Minsk and other large towns also specialize in cultivation of fruits and vegetables.

As for minerals, the Minsk Oblast is rich in potassium and rock salt, peat, shale oil, clay, sapropel, iron ore, mineral water.

The Minsk Oblast has all the prerequisites to boost the country’s export potential. Exports account for 50 % of the Oblast output. The Oblast trades with over 120 countries worldwide.

The Minsk Oblast is located at the crossroads of the major transport itineraries connecting Western Europe with East, Black Sea regions with Baltic Sea regions. The railways from Brest to the Russian border pass through the Oblast. The average velocity of freight trains is 100 km/ hour; the average speed of passenger trains reaches 160 km/hour.

The Minsk Oblast has very good motorway connections. The main transport flows head to Russia and Asian countries in the East, to Baltic Sea ports in the North, to European countries in the West and to Black Sea ports in the South.

With a view to attracting foreign investment in the Minsk Oblast the free economic zone (FEZ) Minsk was set up in 1998. FEZ Minsk includes industrial districts of the Belarusian capital, the territory of National Airport Minsk, land plots of the Minsk Oblast located in the Minsk and Smolevichi districts.

As of January 1, 2008 FEZ Minsk had 71 registered companies, including 47 companies with a share of foreign capital. The main investors are the UK, Russia, Cyprus, the USA, Germany and Latvia.

As of January 1, 2008 the total investments made up $399.3 million, including $88.7 million in foreign investments
The dominating industries in FEZ Minsk are automobile engineering and metal-working. Other well-developed industries are chemical and petrochemical; production of communications means, radio electronics and building materials; wood-working; furniture-making; paper and pulp industry, printing.
 

Sightseeing attractions

As many as 667 objects of historical and cultural heritage of the Republic of Belarus are located in the Minsk Oblast. Among them are historic and archaeological sights, specimen of architecture, ancient estates, palaces, gardens and parks. The major historic and architectural specimen are as follows: an 18th century Roman-Catholic Church in Borisov; an ancient downtown, a park and a wooden church in Logoisk; ruins of a 16th–17th century castle in Zaslavl; St. Bernardine Roman-Catholic Church in the village of Budslav of the Myadel district; a 16th century castle in Nesvizh.

Exhibits of 19 state-run museums bear testimony to history and modern life of the country. Museums of Borisov, Slutsk and Myadel have the richest collections of historical artifacts. The most interesting of them are the National Museum of History and Culture Nesvizh, branches of the Yanka Kupala Literature Museum Vyazynka and Yakhimovshchina; branches of the Yakub Kolas Literature Museum Akhinchitsy, Albut, Smolnya, Lastok; Kuzma Chorny Museum; a branch of the National Fine Arts Museum of the Republic of Belarus in Raubichi.

There are several theatres in the Minsk Oblast. The Minsk Oblast Drama Theatre and the Minsk Oblast Puppet Theatre Batleika are headquartered in Molodechno.

Various national and local festivals are frequently held in the Minsk Oblast. Among them are the National Festival of Belarusian Song and Poetry in Molodechno, the National Festival of the Belarusian Chamber Music Muzy of Nesvizh; Choreographic Festival Khorovod Druzei as well as theatre festivals, tilting matches, tourist and bikers’ gatherings.

The town of Nesvizh is a real gem of the Minsk Oblast. For many centuries it belonged to one of the richest families of Europe – the Radziwills. True connoisseurs of arts those Belarusian magnates hired the best foreign architects and artists. Nesvizh owes many of its unique features to the famous Italian architect Giovanni Maria Bernardoni. He designed the 16th century castle and Corpus Domini Roman-Catholic Church, the first Jesuit baroque building in the Rzeczpospolita. Its walls and ceiling are richly covered with frescos. The church hosts one of the largest necropolises in Europe with 102 sarcophaguses of the Radziwill family.

The church in the village Budslav of the Myadel district once was one of the greatest Roman-Catholic churches in Europe. It is famous for its miracle-working Budslav Mother of God icon painted in 1598 and given to the church in 1613. Today the icon is becoming a national object of worship. On July 2, 1998 the icon was crowned. In 1992, the tradition of pilgrimage to Budslav was renewed.

Many historic sights of the Minsk Oblast are connected with the Great Patriotic War. The Memorial Compound Khatyn, a monument to all Belarusian villages burnt down by the Nazis during the war, has gained international recognition.

One of the calling cards of the Minsk Oblast is the Stalin Line Compound featuring fortification facilities of Minsk built in the 1930s not far from the town of Zaslavl. The 40-hectare compound recreates WWII front-line units and artillery batteries.

The north of the Minsk Oblast is famous for a picturesque chain of lakes. Lake Naroch and so-called Blue Lakes are real gems of the Belarusian nature. In 1999, with a view to preserving natural peculiarities of the Oblast the National Park Narochansky was set up there. The total area of the Park is 94,000 hectares, of them 37,900 hectares are covered with woods. There are 42 lakes with the total area of 18,300 hectares in the Park.

The Oblast has the greatest amount of pine forests and is also notable for its mineral waters.

Due to the picturesque landscape and mild climate the Oblast is home to 18 sanatoria and rest homes.

The major part of the Berezinsky State Biosphere Reserve is located in the Minsk Oblast some 120km to the north of Minsk. Europe’s biggest marches are located there.

There are two biggest national skiing resorts in the Minsk Oblast, namely, Silichi and Logoisk.
Due to its hilly landscape and scenic views the Logoisk district located some 30km away from Minsk has been dubbed Belarusian Switzerland. It hosts one of the most popular skiing resorts in Belarus which is second to no European skiing facility in providing high-class services to skiers and snowboarders.

Another skiing resort Silichi is open all year round. It has seven skiing tracks, a comfortable 100-bed hotel, cottages, restaurants, Russian saunas, a training compound, a ski renting facility and a gym. In summer holidaymakers have an opportunity to relax by the forest lake which has a beach, a café, boat rents, a volleyball ground, a paintball shooting range, children’s attractions. In autumn the area is open for fishermen.

In line with the tourism development programmes adopted by the Minsk Oblast Council for 2006–2010 the Minsk Oblast has been actively developing agro- and eco-tourism. There are over 40 officially registered manor houses in the Oblast. The vast majority of them are concentrated in the Myadel district. Eight manors of the Minsk, Logoisk, Pukhovichi, Cherven, Borisov and Molodechno districts were included into a 350- kilometer tourist itinerary The Ring of Manors.

There are over 100 hotels, motels, sanatoria, rest homes and other tourist facilities in the Minsk Oblast.