The Grodno Oblast is located in the north-western part of Belarus and borders Poland and Lithuania. The Oblast covers 25,000 square kilometres (12% of Belarus’ total territory). It is divided into 17 districts with the population of 1.206 million people.

Due to its geographical situation the Oblast is actively promoting economic relations with Poland, Lithuania and Russia (the Kaliningrad Oblast) within the framework of the Euroregion Neman. The Euroregion unites the Grodno Oblast, Mariampol and Alytus regions of Lithuania and the Polish Wojewуdztwo Podlaskie.

The Grodno Oblast has a highly developed industrial sector. The biggest companies are located in Lida, Slonim, Volkovysk, Novogrudok and Smorgon.

The city of Grodno is the administrative centre of the Grodno Oblast. Grodno is one of the oldest cities of Belarus – it was first mentioned in the chronicles more than 800 years ago.

Grodno is located at the intersection of important trade routes and is a connecting link between the countries of Eastern and Western Europe.

Grodno is a large industrial city. Most developed are light industry (fine cloths, textile, fancy goods), chemical industry (nitrogen fertilizers, chemical fibre), food, mechanical engineering and metalworking industries (production of drive shafts and machines). There are power engineering, woodworking and leather processing facilities, companies producing construction materials, a tobacco factory and a brewery in the city.

There are several universities and colleges in Grodno including Grodno State University, Grodno State Medical University and Grodno Higher Theological Seminary.

Grodno Oblast companies specialize in the production of nitric fertilizers and chemical fibre, truck spare and component parts, technological equipment, furniture, footwear, textile and tobacco goods, ready-made garments, woodworking products and construction materials.

The Oblast’s rapidly growing agricultural sector stimulates development of the agricultural processing industry. The agricultural production indices of the region are close to the European and world levels.

The following railways cross the territory of the Grodno Oblast – Minsk-Molodechno-Smorgon-Vilnius, Vilnius-Lida-Baranovichi, Molodechno-Lida-Mosty-Grodno, Vilnius-Grodno- Bialystok (Poland). Lida, Grodno, Volkovysk are the largest regional railway junctions. Transportation of cargoes on narrow gauge railways meeting European standards is available.

The Grodno airport receives virtually all types of aircraft.

The main motorways running via the Grodno Oblast lead to Minsk, Vilnius, Baranovichi and Brest. One of the main arterial roads of Eurasia goes through the Oblast promoting broader international co-operation. Owing to the favourable geographical situation, the Grodno Oblast has become an integrated element in the trade between Western and Central Europe and the CIS and Asian countries.

One of the major components of the transport industry of the Oblast is water transport and navigable waterways – the Neman and the Schara. The Grodno River Port may be used for shipping cargoes along the Neman through Lithuania to the Baltic Sea. The nearest Belarus-EU border terminal is located 15 kilometres away from the city.

Branches of the gas pipelines Dashava (Ukraine) – Minsk – Ivatsevichi – Lida – Vilnius – Ivatsevichi – Slonim – Grodno run through the territory of the Oblast.

There is a free economic zone Grodnoinvest in the Grodno Oblast. FEZ Grodnoinvest was founded in April 2002. It is a home to 40 resident companies from 18 countries, including 34 operating companies.

At present Grodnoinvest residents work in various businesses – woodworking, mechanical engineering and metalworking industries, production of construction materials, light industry goods and foodstuffs, chemical and petrochemical products.

As of January 1, 2008 FEZ Grodnoinvest drew $78.1 million, including $34.5 million in foreign investments.

Among the most successful investment projects carried out by Grodnoinvest is the production of multilayer polyamide thermostable sausage casing using flexography technologies launched by Bigan JSC which was set up with the American ownership. The company manufactures import substituting products and is the only producer of sausage casing which uses flexography technologies. At present Bigan satisfies 75% of the domestic demand for these products. The company has already utilized $4.8 million of investments.

The production of plant protection means is one of the biggest projects launched by a Grodnoinvest resident – Grodnoraiagroservis in 2007. By 2010 the company plans to use about $8 million of financial resources.

Sightseeing attractions

Architectural compounds are the main physical artifacts inherited by Grodno residents from past generations. This is a major part of their cultural heritage. These are monuments of various epochs and styles reflecting facts from the convoluted history of the city. Monuments of the Russian art of building have survived (remainders of the caste walls and towers, the Lower Church and Sts. Boris and Gleb Church), the Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque- style species of architecture (Bernardin Cathedral and Monastery, Old Castle), Baroque-style monuments (Jesuit, Bridgettine and French Convents with Cathedrals), etc.

Sts. Boris and Gleb (Kolozha) Church is a unique specimen of the Russian art of building. Located on a high steep bank of the Neman it has not completely survived: its arches and cupola collapsed long ago and the southern and a part of the western wall fell into the river hit by a landslide in 1853. During the Soviet Union times the church was restored and is operating now. Visitors can see fresco paintings of the 12th century inside the church.

St. Frances Xavier Cathedral (earlier Jesuit Cathedral) built in 1678 is a splendid specimen of Belarus’ architecture of the 17–18th centuries. The cathedral and monastery used to be the richest churches in Rzeczpospolita. They occupied a whole residential area in the centre of the town. Architectural plastic, sculpture and paintings used to decorate the cathedral.

There are two theatres in Grodno – the Grodno Regional Drama Theatre and the Grodno Puppet Show.

The Grodno city and suburbs boast many historical monuments and specimens of architecture. Among them are Stanislawow country estate with a park and August palace, a former residence of the Polish King August Poniatowski. These are small Baroque-style buildings having certain features of the Classicism architecture dating back to the 1760s–1770s. Only fragments of the palace survived while the country estate is used as an educational centre.

The town of Novogrudok is the first capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which hosted sessions of the Lithuanian tribunal and the Seim of the Polish gentry to elect the Grand Duke of Lithuania and later – the King of Poland.

It was Novogrudok where poet Adam Mitskevich was born. His family moved there from the farmstead of Zaosje. In Novogrudok Adam Mitskevich went to school and started writing his first poems in the Polish language though he called himself a Lithuanian. An exposition of the local museum will tell visitors about the creative activity of the Belarusian poet and everyday life of the Belarusian gentry.

There is a Krasnoselsky archeological complex on the territory of the Oblast. It is a unique collection of artifacts from the Mesolite epoch to the late Middle Ages.

The Grodno Oblast traditionally hosts many festivals. Among them are the All-Belarusian Festival of National Cultures, the republican festival of arts “Mir Castle”, the republican festival of creative youth of drama theatres and puppet shows “Nadezhda”, the Oblast folk music festival “May Musicians Play!”, the international tilting match in Novogrudok, artistic meetings “Grodno- Bialystok” and others. 

The Grodno Oblast has managed to preserve and restore several historical castles. Among them is Mir Castle – an ancient specimen of architecture that in 2002 was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List.

A part of the national park Belovezhskaya Puscha and the Nalibokskiy hunting reserve are located in the Oblast. There is also a hydrological reserve Dikoye, landscape reserves Svityazanka and Ozera, Gozhovsky, Porechsky, Sopotskinsky and Slonimsky botanical reserves in the Oblast.

Zhirovichi Monastery is one of the main pilgrimage sites not only in the Oblast but also in the whole country. Besides, the miracle-working Zhirovichi Mother of God icon is kept there.