The fourth republican competition "Leaders of Industry – 2026" has started in Belarus

On February 18, a press conference was held at the President Hotel on the topic "Increasing the efficiency of industrial enterprises of the Republic of Belarus through the implementation of modern solutions, modernization of equipment and creation of high-tech production systems. The "Industry Leaders" competition is a platform for supporting innovation and strengthening the competitiveness of industrial enterprises".

The start of the IV Republican competition for the award for achievements in industrial technologies and management "Industry Leaders – 2026" was announced.

New opportunities that the competition opens for further promotion of best practices of industrial enterprises, prospects for the development of Belarus's industrial potential, training of engineering personnel for the industrial complex – these and other topical issues were discussed by the participants during the press conference.

How is the "Industry Leaders" competition developing? What's new in 2026?

Tatyana Sakhnovich, Deputy Chairperson of the competition's expert council, Head of the Department of Engineering Economics at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Belarusian National Technical University, spoke about the opportunities that the competition and forum provide to enterprises.

– The competition is being held for the fourth time, and if in 2023 the number of winners included 29 projects and products, then by 2025 their number had almost tripled – 82 projects and products implemented and introduced in various sectors of the industry of the Republic of Belarus were awarded winner diplomas. 61 enterprises became their owners. Among the winners are both large state-owned enterprises and private companies and organizations, – reported Tatyana Sakhnovich.

She noted that the competition has become established, nomination groups have been formed, and a circle of regular participants has emerged.

– New nominations have been added to the traditional nomination groups. This year, a fundamentally new nomination group has also appeared – "Professional of the Year". We perfectly understand that the one who heads the project is often its ideological driving force and embodies all their ideas. Therefore, this nomination will probably be the most interesting, – shared the deputy chairperson of the jury.

In Belarus, 2026 has been declared the Year of Belarusian Women. And the contest organizers have introduced two more nominations into the "Professional of the Year" nomination groups, adapted for the Year of Belarusian Women: "Woman – Head of the Year in Industry" and "Woman – Specialist of the Year in Industry".

What issues will be discussed at the conference

– The final remark of each contest for two years now has been a conference. In 2025, the forum gathered 250 participants, 35 speakers, and the work was organized in four sections. The topics of the presentations were very extensive and rich, the conference aroused great, lively interest, and in some venues, many issues sparked heated discussions. We hope that these discussion points will form the basis for new projects implemented during the year and submitted to the contest as new projects. This year, on April 9, the third practical conference "Industrial Complex of the Republic of Belarus: Export, Import Independence, Effective Management" will be held at the Renaissance Hotel venue, – emphasized Tatyana Sakhnovich.

Given the huge interest in this forum, the Organizing Committee has decided to make the conference international: experts, practitioners, and representatives of the industrial circles of the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and other countries have been invited to participate.

According to her, the conference organizers decided to build upon the state industrial development programs for 2026-2030 and selected five key aspects: export of industrial products and services with a focus on distant countries; import independence, accelerated transition to import-substituting and high-tech products; production system, implementation of lean manufacturing standards, industrial automation and robotization; logistics and cross-border business payments; effective management, implementation of modern methods for managing industrial enterprises, production, and sales.

For the first time within the conference, an exhibition of effective solutions in the field of industrial automation, cross-border payment logistics, banking and insurance products, automation systems for sales, marketing, warehouse, and enterprise financial flow management will be organized.

All information will be posted on the conference website; it is also possible to join the conference's Telegram channel chat.

How universities are training personnel for the industrial complex today

Andrey Safonov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the competition, First Vice-Rector of the Belarusian National Technical University, spoke about the interaction in training engineering personnel for the industrial complex.

– The process of interaction between higher education institutions and industrial enterprises for training highly professional engineering personnel is necessary, and it will continue. Today, there are already significant results, which I, as a representative of university science, am very pleased with, because neither a university nor an enterprise alone can solve its individual local task. This year, industrial enterprises and universities, by joining forces, have established such a vector, – stated Andrey Safonov.

As an example of mutual participation in the training of engineering personnel, he cited the joint educational centers and competence centers that have been created. According to him, BelAZ is a leader not only in the Republic of Belarus but also far beyond the post-Soviet space, which clearly understands that without high-quality training of engineering personnel, it is difficult to talk about the competitiveness of high-tech products. Therefore, such a center has been specifically created using the most modern technologies, including those for unmanned transport. OAO "Peleng" also shared its modern developments with BNTU in terms of the educational process, particularly in the production and design of optical instruments.

Andrey Safonov emphasized that the "Industry Leaders" competition very successfully and effectively accumulates these joint efforts of industrial enterprises and educational institutions, and explained:

– The overwhelming majority of the expert panel for this competition are representatives of universities. At one time, I was also an expert and always participated with great pleasure in evaluating the contestants, getting acquainted with elements of new technologies, and this elevated me as a professional. There is an effective exchange of information, and in general, everyone is doing one thing – ultimately creating competitive products, applying modern technologies, both in education and in production, and solving the main issue of technological independence of the Republic of Belarus.

A word from the absolute winner of the "Industry Leaders – 2025" competition

The GRAND PRIX winner of the "Industry Leaders – 2025" competition was recognized as RUP "Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant".

Deputy General Director for Quality of the Belarusian NPP, Alexander Yerin, continued the topic of personnel training.

– In 2008, a state program for training personnel for the nuclear power industry was adopted, and since 2008, we have started training specialists in the field of atomic energy use. Since 2014, we have started receiving young specialists directly at the Belarusian NPP. Currently, our staff is fully staffed. We closely cooperate with educational institutions, organize excursions to the NPP, participate in the development of diploma projects, and conduct informational work at the site of the nuclear power plant itself. We conduct various internships: production and technological. We guide students from the third year and continue to guide them until the fifth year, and select the best ones to work at the nuclear power plant.

The Deputy General Director spoke about the significance of winning the competition.

– In the "Industry Leaders – 2025" competition, the Belarusian NPP was awarded gold medals in three nominations and received the GRAND PRIX. We inform the public and personnel about any competitions in which we participate, about the modern automated control systems, modern methods, and techniques used, and about the documentation we use to ensure the safety of the nuclear power plant. This competition gave us an opportunity to show the public once again that the nuclear power plant is operated according to all safety criteria and does not threaten the life, health of the population, or the environment. We plan to participate in the "Industry Leaders – 2026" competition as well.

A representative of the Belarusian NPP also shared information that in 2025, the enterprise was certified for the Quality Management System 19443-2023 for the first time in the Republic of Belarus. The standard applies to organizations supplying products or services important for nuclear safety.

– All manufacturers of equipment, spare parts, and devices will also be required to implement such a Quality Management System in order to supply products to the Belarusian NPP.

Experts are ready for work

Vladimir Boykov, Chairman of the Expert Council of the "Industrial Leaders – 2026" competition, Head of the Department of "Tractors" at the Belarusian National Technical University, Chairman of Bureau of the State Expert Council under the State Committee on Science and Technology No. 2 "Mechanical Engineering and Metalworking", Professor, Doctor of Technical Sciences, announced that the main package of competitive documents for 2026 is ready, and emphasized the criteria system for evaluating competitive packages:

- The criteria have been clarified, and the focus will continue to be on indicators such as product innovation, export orientation, and the quality of document preparation.

The head of the jury noted that due to the increase in the number of nominations, the number of experts involved in the expert evaluation of applicants is also growing. Currently, more than 30 specialized experts are collaborating with us.

– The competition's Expert Council has been formed, and the experts are professionals, both in their primary production activities and in the work of our competition commission, which will conduct the next, fourth, competition. Good luck! – added Vladimir Boykov.

Registration of applications from enterprises for participation began on January 15 and will last until May 22, 2026.

The conference "Industrial Complex of the Republic of Belarus: Innovations, Import Independence, Effective Management" will be held on April 9, 2026.

The award ceremony for the winners will take place on June 25, 2026.

All information is available on the websites https://www.industrialleaders.by/ , https://konf.industrialleaders.by/