Over 5,000 women work in Belarus's forestry sector

March 4, Minsk / Tatyana Lobas - BELTA /. 5.1 thousand women, or 14.3% of the total number of employees, work in the forestry sector of Belarus, the Ministry of Forestry informed BELTA correspondent. More than 3.5 thousand women are directly employed in forestry production, of whom 34 work as foresters. The largest number of female foresters is in the Gomel State Production Forestry Association (GPKHO) - 14. In the Grodno GPKHO, out of 96 heads of these departments, there is only one woman. This is a very difficult profession, and especially for a woman. And not only because the duty requires being in the forest in any weather. To work in such a position, one must possess good professional knowledge, high business and personal qualities, organizational skills, dedication to the profession of a forester, and a responsible attitude to work. There are also few chief foresters among women - only three (in the Kobrin Experimental, Vitebsk, and Cherven forestry enterprises). Assistants to foresters and forest masters are 182 and 200 women, respectively. The director of the Skidel forestry enterprise of the Grodno GPKHO, Elena Chubrik, who is also the youngest head of a forestry enterprise in the industry, and the head of the Dretun forestry enterprise of the Vitebsk GPKHO, Valentina Petrova, enjoy great respect and authority among their male colleagues. Each of them has her own secrets of professional skill. In the Skidel forestry enterprise, thanks to the efforts of the young director, one of the best nurseries in the region has been created. Valentina Petrova manages a complex forestry enterprise: there are many swamps, rivers, and lakes on its territory, and a large area is occupied by forests. Nevertheless, she successfully copes with the assigned task - the Dretun forestry enterprise is highly regarded in the industry and fulfills all forecast indicators. This forestry enterprise was the first in the region to introduce advanced timber harvesting technologies using complex logging equipment. In these forestry enterprises, as is customary for a good hostess, there is cleanliness and order in all production areas. The leading republican enterprise "Bellesrad", whose specialists are responsible for environmental and radiation safety in our forests, is also headed by a woman - Larisa Karbanovich. The difficult work of women foresters deserves the highest assessment, public support, and wide recognition, the Ministry of Forestry emphasized. Measures to support large families are successfully implemented in the forestry sector, assistance is provided to low-income individuals, and measures are being taken to ensure safe working conditions for women and to improve their social status. -0-