The VIII International Scientific and Practical Conference "Development of Agro-Industrial Complex in the Context of Food Security Provision"

9-10 September, 2010
Minsk-Brest-Agricultural Production Co-operative "Ostromechevo", Belarus

Republican Scientific Unitary Enterprise "Institute of System Studies in Agro-Industrial Complex of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus"
103 Kazinets St. Minsk 220108 Belarus
Phone: +375 17 2120411
Fax: +375 17 2786921
E-mail: agrecinst@mail.belpak.by

Representatives of reserearch institutes and organizations from the the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine, from Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, the USA, as well as the representatives of authorities and establishments of the Republic of Belarus took part in the conference.

Programme:

September 8, 2010

Check-in of the foreign and nonresident participants. Accomodation.

Delivery of the conference hand-outs.

September 9, 2010

8:30 - Preliminary opening of the conference. Announcing of the programme.

9:00-17:00 - Moving to and acquaintance with the Agricultural Unitary Enterprise "Sovkhoz Slutsk" (Slutsk district, Minsk region, Belarus). Viziting of Agricultural Town Vezhi. Interchange of viewson the topics of the conference. Plenary session in the conference-hall of the enterprise "Sovkhoz Slutsk".

September 10, 2010

9:00 - Plenary Session. Institute of System Studies in Agro-Industrial Complex of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. Symposium 1.

Leaders: Vladimir G. Gusakov, Ivan G. Ushachev, Petr T. Sabluk, Gani A. Kaliev

10:30 - Coffee break.

11:00 - Plenary Session. Symposium 2.

Leaders: Valery I. Belsky, Aleksej S. Mindrin, Altynbek B. Moldashev, William H. Meyers.

13:00 - Lunch.

14:00 - Plenary Session. Symposium 3.

Leaders: Zinaida M. Ilyina, Stanislav O. Siptits, Aleksandr N. Stratan, Rasa Melnikiene

15:30 - Coffee break.

16:00 - Plenary Session. Symposium 4.

Leaders: Aleksandr P. Shpak, Guljahan Kurbanova, Andrzej Kowalski, Stephan von Cramon-Taubadel

17:30 - Closing of the conference.

List of Proceedings:

	Agriculture in Belarus: Factors and Prospects for the Sustainable Development Vladimir G. Gusakov Doctor of Economics, Professor, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk (Belarus)
	Food Security in Belarus: Criteria, Indices, State Zinaida M. Ilyina Doctor of Economics, Professor, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Institute of System Studies in Agro-Industrial Complex of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk (Belarus)
	Food Security in ECA: the New Driving Forces and Prospects Guljahan Kurbanova Economist, Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (REU), Budapest (Hungary)
	Agricultural Policy for the Provision of Food Security in the Conditions of Rising of the World Food Crisis Ivan G. Ushachev Doctor of Economics, Professor, Academician of the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Vice-president of the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Director of All-Russia Research and Development Institute of Agricultural Economics, Moscow (Russia)
	Direction and Transformation of the Economic System in the Agrarian Sphere Petr T. Sabluk Doctor of Economics, Professor, Academician of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine, Director of the National Research Center "Institute of Agricultural Economics" of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev (Ukraine)
	Problems of Integration of Agroindustrial Market of Member Countries of the Customs Union Gani A. Kaliev Doctor of Economics, Professor, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty (Kazakhstan)
	Employment Status and Revenue Position Work in Agriculture as Factors of Food Security in Russia Vladimir A. Bogdanovskij Ph.D. in Economics, Associated Professor, Head of Labour Economics and Social Studies Department, All-Russia Research Institute of Economics, Labour and Management in Agriculture, Moscow (Russia)
	Developmemt of Agricultural Production Branch of Moldova in the Context of Food Security Provision Aleksandr N. Stratan Doctor of Economics, Director of the Institute of Economy, Finance and Statistics, Chisinau (Moldova)
	Impacts of the Global Economic Crisis on Agriculture Food Security William H. Meyers Professor of Agricultural and Applied Economics and Co-Director, Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI), University of Missouri, Columbia, MO (USA)
	Organizational and Economic Measures for Food Security Provision in Kazakhstan Altynbek B. Moldashev Doctor of Economics, Professor, Director of the Kazakh Research Institute of Agro-Industrial Complex Economics and Rural Areas Organization, Almaty (Kazakhstan)
	Role, Position and Importance of Nongovernmental Organizations in Hunger Control Giedrius A. Petruzhis Director of the International Institute of Political Sciences, Kaunas (Lithuania)
	Role of Science in the Solution of Problem of Food Security Provision in the Russian Federation Aleksej S. Mindrin Doctor of Economics, Professor, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Director of All-Russia Research Institute of Economics, Labour and Management in Agriculture, Moscow (Russia)
	Optimization of Trade and Purchasing Interventions at the Grain Market Stanislav O. Siptits Doctor of Economics, Professor, Director of All-Russian Institute of Agrarian Problems and Informatics n.a. A.A. Nikonov, Moscow (Russia)
	Policy of Food Security Provision in European Union Countries: Development and Prospects Rasa Melnikiene, Artiom Volkov, Vilma Dapkute Lithuanian Institute of Agrarian Economics, Vilnius (Lithuania)

Resolution:

The Conference took place on the initiative of the Department of Agrarian Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Republican Scientific Unitary Enterprise "Institute of System Studies in Agro-Industrial Complex of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus" in accordance with the lists of scientific and scientific-practical meetings, conferences, symposia, congresses, seminars and schools which were planned in Belarus, CIS and other regions of the world.

Representatives of reserearch institutes and organizations from the the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine, from Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, the USA, as well as the representatives of authorities and establishments of the Republic of Belarus took part in the conference.

The participants of the conference after granting a hearing of the made speeches and after discussion of the current situation and problems of agro-industrial complex development in the conext of food security provision mark the following:

In modern conditions the world community considers the security in food sphere and development of the agricultural branch as the top-priority goals of social and economic development. Each country defines its national strategy and prospects for food problem decision taking into consideration the existing and predicted trends of formation and distribution of food supplies, and in terms of the Rome Declaration on World Food Security, Plan of actions for the period till 2015 and realization of a series of measures for the eradication of poverty - the main reason of hunger and malnutrition.

The deficit of the world resources predicted both for the medium-term period and for the distant prospect, as well as the volatility of carryover food stocks indicate the probability of decision bias of market problems from economic and commercial spheres into the political one, that complicates the position of countries involved into foodstuffs import. The peculiar problems of modern stage of food security provision lie in the actualization of food independence direction. Measures of dynamic response are accepted by all countries. It is caused not only by the outrunning demand growth over supply and by the price enhancement for foodstuffs, but also by the dampening of exports, as well as by the stable growth of demand for import.

The most significant tendencies defining the formation and distribution of food resources, and also the provision of food security at various levels consist in the following:

• in the developed countries the demand for foodstuffs remains practically at the attained level. One can notice changes only in consumption structure in the direction of increasing its qualitative parameters, that causes the stimulation of consumption and export of products of high degree of processing and as well as the target commodity production;


• in developing countries alongside with the growth of the middle class well-being there is the increasing of demand for products. This fact in the conditions of home-made production deficiency activates import purchasing of foodstuffs. Accordingly, net-importers, especially from among the developing countries and countries with economies in transition, are limited in possibility of satisfaction of a consumer demand;


• strengthening of the processes of economic globalization and trade liberalization in concordance with rules of GATT/WTO causes the stiffer competition and division of market segment between the large food companies, that worsens the possibility of entrance to the international market for the new counterparties;


• the importance of food safety and quality increases;


• takes place the intensification of innovative development processes, introduction of highly effective and resource-saving technologies and economic methods which make it possible to produce the competitive high technology products;


• interaction between international and internal markets of agricultural products is based particularly on the economic interests of each country defining both food security and independence of each country, as well as the support of national producer;


• markets are gradually getting back into tranquility, but at the same time, they do not show stability because of the influence of adverse natural, economic, social and other factors, that notably affects the grain market;


• expansion of fish, meat and milk production (coinciding with demand fluctuations, caused by economic recession and widespread cases of animal disease) is accompanied by price advance and does not favour the increasing of purchasing capacity of the population and efficiency of industries;


• development of the alternative fuel market predetermines the diversification of structure of domestic consumption of agricultural products and export, the enhancement of its structure and geography, provided by the implementation of measures and frameworks providing the quality assurance of products in conformity with requirements of international standards, and also by means of support and insurance of supplies with a view of protection against possible risks;


• inter-relations of the agricultural sector with the energy, financial and currency markets increase its vulnerability to external threats, and consequently promote price advance.

The world crisis foregrounded the task of construction of a new model of the economic development, focused on the intensive growth factors, including the increasing of innovations intensity, activization of investment demand, improvement of investment climate, creation of favorable conditions for business dealing, introduction of adaptive tools for the stabilization of the national economy and food market.

On the assumption of the developed and predicted tendencies of food markets development, the sustainable development of agriculture serves as the most important direction to the achievement of security and stability of food system functioning. The basic strategy of food security include the following: sufficient offer; efficient demand; economic affordability of foodstuffs for the population; steadiness of food system functioning which minimizes the destructive influence of endogenous and exogenous factors of market conditions.

In accordance with its economy level each state determines the security scopes in food sphere, develops the strategy and directions of agriculture development, which make it possible to solve the problem mainly by means of the sustainable and dynamic development of national production.

Development of agricultural branch is considered to be sustainable if, firstly, the production level satisfies the requirements of population in food products and the requirements of the processing industry in raw materials; secondly, if the development of rural territories is realized on the basis of population income growth, creation of favorable living conditions; thirdly, if the natural potential is held true and increases. The priorities of agrarian policy, including the food, agricultural, agroindustrial and foreign trade aspects should be directed towards the achievement of the sustainable development, and should be focused on innovative development, the purpose of which is the increasing of efficiency.

The sustainable development of agro-industrial complex is determined by the purposes of economic, social and ecological character, including the following:

• provision of food security which guarantees the physical and economic availability of foodstuffs at any time to all population, and in the quantity which is necessary for an active and healthy life;


• security of incomes of the national agrarian producer. The non-monopolistic in itself agrarian production is abandoned to price pressure, both on the part of branch and local monopolies, and the world markets;


• improvement of quality of life of the society, and of all social groups of the population;


• the guaranteed deliveries of resources taking into consideration the optimal production volume and their rational use;


• preservation and augmentation of environmental assets and creation of favorable conditions for business dealing in agrarian sphere.

The maintenance of measures for the dynamic development of agro-industrial complex, taking into consideration its modern state, should be defined, first of all, by the necessity of provision of industrial stability of agro-industrial complex.

For the increasing of economic security as the constituent part of the common system of development, it is necessary to create the optimum financial and economic opportunities both for the simple, and for the extended reproduction.

The raising of living standards of workers of the agrarian sphere which assumes the supportability of the essential material and nonmaterial benefits, is the mainstream of the sustainable social development of agro-industrial complex.

Ecological security as one of the basic components of the sustainable development of agro-industrial complex is connected with increasing of soil fertility, genetic conservation of plants and animals, protection of land resources, prevention of natural ecosystem pollution. It is necessary to reduce the negative consequences of technological environmental impact as the destabilizing factor.

The formation and maintenance of market equilibrium of agricultural production, raw materials and food markets (in accordance with demand and supply under the conditions of export orientation of agricultural production) serve as the constituent part of the process of agro-industrial complex transition to the sustainable development. In this context it is necessary to concentrate efforts on realization of priorities of the perspective and sustainable development in the following directions:

• complex modernization of technical and technological base of agriculture on the basis of the recent scientific and research developments and the best samples of technical equipment, providing its innovative way of development;


• adaptive intensification of plant growing and animal husbandry branches in accordance with the environmental and economic conditions;


• intensifying of specialization and enhancement of allocation of plant growing and animal husbandry industries;


• rational use of advantages of concentration, consecutive development of cooperation and integration of agricultural production;


• creation of conditions for the extensive development of all forms of agricultural entrepreneurship and business;


• transition to a new system of production motivation and encouragement.

Food security of republic is at the stage when conceptual bases are implemented. Subsequently it is necessary to pass on from the concept to the long-term strategy providing not only physical and economic availability of foodstuffs, but also improvement of the quality of life of the population. It makes economic sense to pass the law "Concerning the Food Security" as the main legal document the dispositions of which should define and regulate the directions of strategy of food policies and development of agricultural and food spheres.

Solution to problem of sustainable development and security in the food sphere assumes the constructive cooperation of state together with the scientific and professional communities of workers of agro-industrial complex and agrarian business by means of active participation in development and realization of programs of the sustainable development of agriculture.

Workers of scientific sphere, while promoting the solution to problem of sustainable development of agriculture, should actively get involved into the creative process of technical, technological, selection and social and economic transformations. The agricultural research organizations should activate joint research and practical activities in agro-industrial complex.

Legislative and executive power bodies should approve the regulatory standards and implement the national scientifically grounded plans of sustainable development of agricultural and food sphere by means of forming the conditions for the effective use of natural, production and financial resources with a view of expanding the production capacity of agricultural products, raw materials and foodstuffs.

Agrarian scientists consider that their main objective is to work in every possible way for the solution of the major national task of the country - the provision of stable social and economic development under the conditions of preserving the favorable environment and rational use of resource potential for satisfaction of requirements of present and future generations. The condition for achievement of the above-mentioned is the rendering of every possible State support for introduction of resource-saving technologies, managing approaches, and quality assurance systems into agro-industrial complex. Development of economic integration of states should not interfere with rendering of the State support to agricultural industry, should not cause the reduction of on-budget expenditures for agro-industrial complex financing.

Participants of the VIII International Scientific and Practical Conference "Development of Agro-Industrial Complex in the Context of Food Security Provision" consider that the unification of the scientific experience of the leading national and foreign agrarian scientists will reignite the sustainable development of the agrarian science - the fundamental basis of the second stage to "green revolution", caused by the climate change, deficit of water resources, natural anomalies, the necessity of creation of adaptive systems of management, technologies and productions and other directions determining the innovativeness and efficiency of agricultural and food production sphere functioning.