How Belarusian Cities That Were Recently Local Drivers Are Degrading
Over the past 10 years, the population of all major cities in Belarus (over 50,000 people) has decreased, with the exception of five. The top three "anti-leaders" include major industrial centers with flagship enterprises of national significance. At one time, they were points of attraction for people and material resources, but now they have begun to weaken, writes Thinktanks.pro.
Svetlahorsk. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Svetlahorsk has degraded the most among large cities — over ten years it has lost more than 10% of its population: in 2015, 69 thousand people lived here, and by the beginning of 2025, only 61.8 thousand people remained.
The main enterprise of this city is a new pulp and paper mill, which began operating in 2018. Its commissioning was accompanied by environmental problems; residents complained about an unpleasant smell. In 2023, the state recovered more than $1 million from the enterprise through court for "damage caused to the environment."
Several times, the authorities announced a final solution to the problem. However, on January 6, 2026, residents of the city again published an emotional video complaining about the unpleasant smell. Moreover, emergencies have occurred more than once at the Svetlahorsk PPC (Pulp and Paper Mill). For example, in June 2023, an explosion occurred here, killing three people.
Orsha also suffered demographic losses comparable to Svetlahorsk, totaling 10% of its population. Currently, it has 101.7 thousand residents.
It is interesting that this very city was chosen in 2018 as an exemplary pilot in the project of transforming large Belarusian cities into alternative centers of attraction for labor and capital, instead of Minsk. 1.4 billion rubles were invested in the project for the revival of Orsha.
Orsha is located near the border with Russia. Light industry enterprises — a flax mill, a cannery, and others — operate there more or less successfully. However, it seems they cannot withstand the competition for labor with Russian enterprises.
In third place among the outsiders is Salihorsk — a city where potash fertilizers, which have fallen under sanctions, are extracted.
Previously, this city was a leader in the country for salary levels, competing with the rates of Minsk IT specialists. Now, Salihorsk has dropped to fifth place in the salary ranking.
Along with the fall in the relative level of salaries in Salihorsk, the population is also decreasing. At the beginning of 2016, 103.8 thousand residents lived in the city, and now — only 97 thousand. This means that over 10 years, the city's population has decreased by 6.5%.
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