Benefits and Costs of Stalin's economic policies

• Introduction

  It is somewhat accurate to say that the benefits of Stalin's economic policies outweighed its costs. Stalin introduced the following... Whilst they transformed the soviet economy into a great industrial giant, Stalin's Great Turn created long term problems which proved impossible to solve within the context of state planning. To determine whether they were beneficial would mean that they had a positive effect on something, therefore contribute to economic growth which was stalins aim.
• (1) Five Year Plans 1928-41

  -industrialise Russia by increasing production through large-scale investments

  - Positives: 323% increase in fuel and metal production, projects such as the Moscow-Volga canal increased transport efficiency

  -Low productivity addresses through a national initiative in 1935 - giving higher payments and rewards for workers = productivity rose across industry

  -Negatives: Gosplan was inefficient and central planning couldn't meet consumer needs years in the future + goods were often low quality/didnt meet targets

  - poor communication between factories meant 40% of produced materials were wasted,

  -lack of investment in essential housing - 650 000 people in one area of Moscow had no bath house
• (2) Collectivisation (1929)

  -Farm forcible merged, equipment given to poor peasants

  -by 1941 all farms were collectivised

  Positives: Government could procure grain more efficiently in collective farms, procurement rose from 10.8m (1928) to 22.6m (1933)

  -Negative: Excessive procurement caused famine in Ukraine (5m died 1932-33), collectivisation was unsuccessful with 90kg less being produced per hectare than in NEP

  -Peasants rebelled - destroying crops, animals and machinery - 60mill sheeps and 11mill pigs killed

  -caused long term problems that could not be fully solved by stalins successors.
• (3) Fourth Five Year Plan (1945-50)

  -Third Plan ended prematurely due to german invasion / stalin wanted to continue his aims

  -88% of investment went into heavy industry

  -Positives: steel increased from 12.3mill tonnes to 27.3 from 1945-50 / Production in siberia and ukraine exeeded pre war levels

  -Negatives: 12% investment into food + consumer goods = production scarce

  -Plagued with inefficiencies + social problems but no doubt economy was growing