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Since Lukashenko has been in power, schools and hospitals have not been closed in Belarus. Azarenok's statement is under fact check
What does the data show?
Thanks to Aleksandr Lukashenko, Belarus has yet to experience a reduction in schools and hospitals, Grigory Azarenok said. The Weekly Top Fake team has compared the numbers from the 90s to recent years.
Leading pro-government propagandist Grigory Azarenok explained why Belarusians should be grateful to Aleksandr Lukashenko, in the air of the program "Azarenok. Napryamuyu" on February 6.
Here is what his conversation with political scientist Pyotr Petrovsky looked like: “We haven't seen shock therapy. We have not experienced any layoffs... How is this… Hospital optimization. That’s all,” Grigory Azarenok said.
“Schools,” Petrovsky, the program guest, added.
“Schools. We haven't seen anything like this,” Azarenok agreed.
In 1990, there were 874 hospitals in Belarus. Since then, their number has been steadily declining. And by the end of 2022, it had dropped to 585.
Every year the number of schools in Belarus decreases. So, in 1994 there were about five thousand, then in 2000 — 4,700. For the 2023/2024 academic year, there are 2,872 schools left in Belarus.
