On April 10, Minsk /Andrei Asfura - BELTA/. In Belarus, it is planned to transfer abandoned villages for tourist facilities almost free of charge, as long as people engage in their development. This was announced today by Deputy Minister of Sports and Tourism Cheslav Shulga at a meeting with members of the delegation from Krasnodar Krai, who came to study Belarus's experience in rural tourism, a BELTA correspondent reports. Currently, there are quite a few villages in Belarus where not a single person lives. "This is particularly characteristic of the northern regions - Vitebsk and Grodno regions, where the farmstead system prevails," noted the Deputy Minister. As a result of population aging, in Braslav district alone, about 12 villages have been excluded from the list of settlements in the last two years due to the absence of any residents. "We are working to find people who could buy out these villages, even for one base unit," said Cheslav Shulga. "Let them transform and equip them into tourist villages." The first individuals willing to "revive" deserted farmsteads have already appeared: they want to acquire abandoned villages in Rossony district of Vitebsk region and Kopyl district of Minsk region. However, if desired, investors can undertake the development of not only abandoned but also inhabited villages. As an example, the Deputy Minister cited a Belarusian businessman who made his fortune in the Leningrad region. In Pruzhany district, he bought out the entire village where his mother lived and created a tourist complex there. "In addition, he added a sports complex, in general, he invested a lot of money in this venture," emphasized Cheslav Shulga.-0-

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