Aspects of Organisation of Civil Service in Belarus
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Abstract
An analysis of the Belarusian civil service has shown that its formal organisation follows the principles of public service that do not differ from those found in most other European states and are applied universally. On the other hand, the fact that Belarus is governed by an authoritarian regime which follows a strict vertical management of public institutions, the practice of civil service is highly dependent on specific decisions adopted by the President and his Administration.
The present model of the Belarusian civil service can be considered as mixed. It functions under authoritarian conditions and therefore it is hard to evaluate its possible performance given a democratic regime.
Contract management in Belarus is an innovation that does not only serve a purpose of trying to increase public sector efficiency, but is also applied as a tool to eliminate officials disloyal to the regime.
Formally, organisation of recruitment and employment to the civil service in Belarus is similar to that existing in the other European states. However, a major factor in creating the personnel (cadre) reserve for the civil service is the role of the Administration of the President. This serves to prove that employment to a formally neutral civil service is highly dependent on the decisions taken on the top political level. The major factor when considering employment to the higher positions of civil service is the affiliation of the candidate to the “pro-presidential” public organisations (which are not named as political parties, but essentially they are) such as “Belaja Rus” and Belarus Republican Youth Union (BRSM). Membership in these organisations guarantees possibilities for greater career advancement in the civil service and more broadly in the public sector.
The present model of the Belarusian civil service can be considered as mixed. It functions under authoritarian conditions and therefore it is hard to evaluate its possible performance given a democratic regime.
Contract management in Belarus is an innovation that does not only serve a purpose of trying to increase public sector efficiency, but is also applied as a tool to eliminate officials disloyal to the regime.
Formally, organisation of recruitment and employment to the civil service in Belarus is similar to that existing in the other European states. However, a major factor in creating the personnel (cadre) reserve for the civil service is the role of the Administration of the President. This serves to prove that employment to a formally neutral civil service is highly dependent on the decisions taken on the top political level. The major factor when considering employment to the higher positions of civil service is the affiliation of the candidate to the “pro-presidential” public organisations (which are not named as political parties, but essentially they are) such as “Belaja Rus” and Belarus Republican Youth Union (BRSM). Membership in these organisations guarantees possibilities for greater career advancement in the civil service and more broadly in the public sector.
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Articles
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