One of the first women managers in the customs service - about the loyalty of the profession and the secret of happiness of Belarusians

If the fate of Lyudmila Sheverdak was a customs declaration, it would take a long time to fill in by hand: there are too many turns, achievements and important decisions. Today, Lyudmila is the first deputy head of the Minsk regional customs, behind more than 30 years of service. The highest recognition of this path was three state awards – the honorary title “Honored Customs Officer of the Republic of Belarus”, the medal “For Labor Merit” and the medal “For Imperfect Service” of the III degree.

By first education, Lyudmila Sheverdak is an economist. After graduating from the Goretsk agricultural Academy, she returned to her small homeland, to the village of Lysichnik in Bykhovshchina, and settled in the local economy. There was nothing to do with customs. But the excitement and desire to move forward led the heroine first to the law faculty of BSU, and then to the service, which became the work of her life. In 1993, the Mogilev customs office was formed, where lawyers, economists and financiers were recruited. Lyudmila decided to try her hand and stayed for 27 years. During this time, he went from an ordinary inspector to a deputy head of customs, says:

I remember when I first came, all payments, bets were counted manually with a calculator. All declarations were in paper form. Today, customs clearance has become a high-tech process: dozens of specialized programs have been introduced, and convenient infrastructure has been built. For clarity: if earlier one declaration was given up to ten days, now it takes about four hours.

In 2020, Lyudmila Sheverdak was waiting for a new career turn – transfer to the Minsk Regional Customs to the post of deputy head, and a year later she assumed the duties of first deputy. The capital unit accounts for more than half of all customs payments that form the country's budget. Responsibility increased multiplely, but the experienced specialist was not afraid. According to Lyudmila, sincere love for the Motherland begins with a conscious and honest attitude to your work

- The economic security and well-being of the state directly depends on how effectively customs processes are organized. There are no accidental people here: they simply do not linger, because the work must be given entirely. A customs officer must be both an economist, a lawyer, and a psychologist.

On the desk of the head invariably there are directories, codes, codes of laws. With bookmarks, in some places pasted with tape, they store traces of daily work. During the time of Lyudmila’s students, one of the professors liked to say that to be a real lawyer, you need to lose the regulatory framework every day, like on a violin. Such thinking brings the specialist new professional discoveries even after 30 years in the ranks.

To replenish the resource after busy everyday life Lyudmila with her husband goes to the village, to the parental house. Here she breeds flowers, and in a fit of inspiration writes poems - about a woman, nature, native land: - I often get out on hiking and like to watch women - confident, beautiful, smiling. And I think, why are they like that? My thoughts are confirmed by the results of social research. The vast majority of citizens in our country feel happy, protected and free thanks to the wise and balanced policy of the Head of State. We have the most important thing – the opportunity to live, work, develop and raise children under a peaceful sky. Belarus Customs Service marks 35th anniversary with significant achievements

There are 13 railway and 26 road crossing points in the country. The total throughput of road points is 32 thousand cars per day. Recently, the customs service has reconstructed 12 checkpoints. Among them, for example, “Berestovica”. And this year, the reconstruction of the Stone Log will begin, the work will be staged and completed until 2029.