The 500 Days Program () was a shock therapy program to overcome the economic crisis in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

by means of a transition to a

market economy A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production, and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand. The major characteristic of a mark ...

. Intended to comprehensively change the Soviet Union in a span of two years, it was ultimately a factor leading to the Soviet Union's collapse.

History

The program was proposed by a group of economists including Stanislav Shatalin, Grigory Yavlinsky and Yevgeny Yasin. According to authors, the Soviet Union needed "to be built anew, nor reformed." The 500 Days Program was proposed to implement a form of economic shock therapy which proposed to transform the Soviet Union comprehensively in less than two years. The program was further developed by a work group under the direction of Stanislav Shatalin (an economic advisor to

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

). Before beginning work on the project, Shatalin had been assured by Gorbachev that he was serious about radically reforming the Soviet economy. Therefore, in August 1990, the group issued a 400-page report titled "Transition to the Market". It was based on the earlier "400 Days Project" prepared by Yavlinsky and became known colloquially as the "500 Days Program" as it intended to create the groundwork for a modern market economy in 500 days. The report called for creation of a competitive market economy, mass

privatization Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

, prices determined by the market, integration with the world economic system, a large transfer of power from the Union government to the

Republics A republic, based on the Latin phrase '' res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a state in which political power rests with the public (people), typically through their representatives—in contrast to a monarchy. Although ...

, and many other radical reforms. The 500 Days Program immediately gained the complete support of

Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...

and a more skeptical support from

; soon after,

Nikolai Ryzhkov Nikolai Ivanovich Ryzhkov (; ; 28 September 1929 – 28 February 2024) was a Russian politician. He served as the last Premier of the Soviet Union, chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1991 and was succeeded b ...

, the

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the

Council of Ministers Council of Ministers is a traditional name given to the supreme Executive (government), executive organ in some governments. It is usually equivalent to the term Cabinet (government), cabinet. The term Council of State is a similar name that also m ...

, openly repudiated it. Ultimately, this shock therapy plan was a contributing factor to the collapse of the USSR.

Authors

* Stanislav Sergeyovich Shatalin, * Nikolai Yakovlevich Petrakov, * Grigory Alekseyovich Yavlinsky, * Sergey Vladimirovich Aleksashenko, * Andrey Petrovich Vavilov, * Leonid Markovich Grigoryev, * Mikhail Mikhailovich Zadornov, * Vladlen Arkadyevich Martynov, * Vladimir Mashchits, * Aleksey Yuryevich Mikhailov * Boris Grigorevich Fyodorov, * Tatyana Vladimirovna Yarygina, * Yevgeniy Grigorevich Yasin,

References

Works cited

External links

{{in lang, ru Reform in the Soviet Union Economy of the Soviet Union 1990 in the Soviet Union Grigory Yavlinsky

History

Authors

See also

References

Works cited

Further reading

External links