The Gomel Oblast is located in the south-eastern part of Belarus along the state border with Russia and Ukraine. The Oblast occupies 40,400 square kilometres and is divided into 21 administrative-territorial districts. This is the largest Oblast in Belarus.

About 1.5 million people live in the Oblast. Belarusians account for 84.2% of the total population.

The administrative centre of the Oblast is the city of Gomel.

Gomel is one of the largest industrial cities of Belarus. Gomel industrial enterprises produce 44 % of the Oblast’s aggregate output. Gomel boasts big industrial companies producing peat extracting machines, fodder and grain harvesters, starting engines, glass pipes, bearings, glazing plate glass and iron castings. These products are much in demand abroad. The following companies are famous far beyond the bounds of Belarus: Gomselmash (farm machines to cultivate and harvest crops), the Gomel-based Production Association Kristall (diamond production and precious stone grinding), Spartak (chocolate and confectionery), Gomeldrev (furniture), Gomelsteklo (glassware), Komintern (man’s suits and women’s costumes) and the garment factory 8th of March (knitwear).

Gomel is the scientific and cultural centre of the Oblast. The city hosts Frantsisk Skorina State University of Gomel, Belarusian State University of Transport, Gomel State Medical University, Pavel Sukhoy State Technical University of Gomel, Belarusian Trade-Economic University of Consumer’s Co-operation and Gomel Institute of Engineers of the Emergency Ministry of Belarus. There are also many special secondary schools, colleges and vocational schools in Gomel.

Gomel scientists, engineers and designers work for 20 research institutions, design offices and affiliates. Widely known are achievements of research staff of the Forestry Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus and the Institute of Mechanics of Metal and Polymeric Systems.

Gomel scientists deal with consequences of the Chernobyl catastrophe. Unique in its kind, Polesye Radiation Ecological Reserve is a testing site for examening and preserving Chernobyl-affected territories in their natural state

Industrial facilities play the central role in the Oblast’s economic sector. Industrial manufacturers produce steel and rolled metal, mechanical engineering, chemical and woodworking products, light industry goods and foodstuffs. They also offer oil products, sulphuric acid, phosphoric fertilizers, fodder harvesters, bearings, machines, glass, paper, cardboard, wallpaper, construction materials, furniture, kitchen salt, soap and agricultural products. About one third of all products are exported to 70 countries.

The Gomel Oblast has oil reserves, potassium and rock salt fields, brown coal and oil-shale deposits as well as peat, reserves of building stone, sand, chalk, gypsum, loam, kaolin and mineral water. Important traffic arteries run through the Oblast, which also has big railway junctions – Gomel, Zhlobin and Kalinkovichi. The Oblast centre is located at the intersection of railways Odessa-Kiev-St. Petersburg, Bakhmach-Vilnius and Bryansk-Brest.

Motorways St. Petersburg-Kiev-Odessa, Bryansk-Kobrin, Gomel-Minsk and Gomel-Mozyr connect all centres of the Oblast.

The Gomel airport offers flights to near and far abroad.

Regular navigation routes go along the Pripyat, Dnepr and Berezina. Business contacts with the neighbouring countries are promoted within the framework of the Euroregion Dnepr.

In 1998 the Gomel Oblast set up a free economic zone Gomel-Raton which is divided into production, export and free customs areas. As of January 1, 2008 there were 34 residents registered in the zone, including 32 operating companies.
As of January 1, 2008 FEZ Gomel-Raton drew Br190.6 billion in investments, including $72 million in foreign investments.

Gomel-Raton hosts enterprises with foreign capital from Russia, Germany, France, the Czech Republic, Lichtenstein, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Poland, Switzerland and the USA.

The zone offers all necessary facilities, warehouses, a well-developed infrastructure and a whole set of utilities services for the work of radioelectronic, instrument making, electrotechnical and cable manufacturing companies. Free lands are available for implementation of new investment projects.

The companies-residents work in such sectors of economy as petrochemistry, mechanical engineering, metal working, woodworking and pulp and paper industries. They produce construction materials, glass ware and foodstuffs. Gomel-Raton top managers are interested in promoting science-intensive, innovation-based and environmentally friendly production on the territory of the zone.

One of the promising residents of Gomel-Raton is the Russian private company VEZA-G. The company has been successfully implementing an investment project “Climatic Equipment Production”. In line with the project VEZA-G will launch absolutely new production for the Republic of Belarus. It will manufacture industrial central frame-panel conditioners. Since its founding the Russian company has injected $3.2 million into the project including $1.8 million in capital investments. A pilot batch of the products was made in June 2007.

Sightseeing attractions

There are 1,360 historical and cultural, 140 architectural and 1,040 archaeological monuments and sites in the Gomel Oblast. The Oblast also boasts more than 20 museums including the Gomel Oblast museum of local lore, the Vetka arts and crafts museum and two picture galleries.

The Gomel Palace and Park Ensemble has been one of the most famous sights of the city for more than two hundred years. Its pearl is a magnificent palace of the Rumyantsevs- Paskevichs, one of the best species of the Classicism- style architecture not only in Belarus but in the whole CIS area.

There is a Gavriil Vaschenko picture gallery in Gomel. The artist’s creative work had a strong impact on the whole Belarusian art. Gavriil Vaschenko is a People’s Artist of the Republic of Belarus, an Honored Art Worker, a State Prize-winner of the Republic of Belarus. His works are very popular in Belarus and abroad. The International Biographical Centre in Cambridge called Gavriil Vaschenko “Person of the 20th Century” and “Person of the Year ’92”. The American Biographical Institute called him “Man of the Year ’94” and awarded him a Medal of Honor 2000.

There is a regional drama theatre, a puppet show and a youth experimental theatre-studio in Gomel.

The Gomel State Circus is considered to be one of the best circus shows of Belarus. Performances of the Gomel city symphonic and chamber orchestras are always a great success as well. The Gomel regional philharmonic society organizes concerts of Belarusian and foreign singers.

The Gomel Oblast hosts traditional festivals “Art Masters to Villages”, “Chernobyl Path – Road of Life”, musical art festivals “Belarusian Musical Autumn”, “Sozh Round Dance”, “Slavonic Brotherhood” and an instrumental music festival. The Oblast is famous for its medieval centre – the Old Turov – the former capital of the Turov Principality. Kirill of Turov (1130–1182), a philosopher, preacher and author of many works, which make part of the golden stocks of the Orthodox compositions, lived and worked there. In 1993 a monument was erected to this outstanding man in Turov.

Founded in 1680 by the Old Believers who fled from Russia, the Vetka arts and crafts museum presents a unique collection of blackletter books.

Those who are keen on archaeology can visit a small Belarusian town of Yurovichi in the Kalinkovichi district. A whole cluster of specimens of archaeology including six ancient settlements, remainders of an ancient fortified town and a burial mound were discovered there. Collections of the archaeological-ethnographical museum of Frantsisk Skorina State University of Gomel may arouse deep interest as well.

The national park Pripyatsky was once laid out on the territory of the Oblast to preserve unique landscapes of the Belarusian Polesye. This is the only place on the Earth where ancient floodplain oak woods exist.

More than a half of all Belarusian oak woods grow in the Gomel Oblast. There are many lakes in the Oblast as well. The biggest one is Lake Krasnoye. Big navigable rivers – the Dnepr, the Sozh, the Berezina and the Pripyat run through the Oblast.

The Gomel Oblast boasts 3 rehabilitation centres – Pridneprovsky, Solnechny and Vasiljevka, 15 health centres, 4 children’s recuperation facilities, 4 health resorts, 3 student’s rehabilitation centres, 5 recreation centres and 29 children’s summer camps.

More than 30 hotels and motels offer their services to Gomel guests.