10 Questions
What was the main focus of the Seven Year Plan implemented in 1959?
Improving living standards and consumer goods
What was the result of the Virgin Land Scheme?
Poor harvests and imported grain
What was the outcome of the 'Agrocities' project?
Failure to replicate urban conditions
What was the target of the Seven Year Plan regarding working hours?
40 hour working week
What was the result of the increased availability of consumer goods?
Reduced quality of goods compared to the West
What was the aim of the growth of plants like maize?
To combat food shortages
What was the effect of the 1958 economic growth?
10%/year
What was the result of the price paid for State procurement of grain?
No real change in production levels
What was the outcome of the space program?
Fear in the US
What was the result of the improvements in technology developments of public transport?
Improved commute times
Study Notes
Economic Reforms
- Cuts on military and heavy industry spending were implemented by Malenkov
- The 1956 Sixth Five Year Plan aimed to improve Stalin's centralised approach to target setting, but it was too ambitious and abandoned in 1958
- The Supreme Economic Council was established in 1959, and a new Seven Year Plan was announced with a focus on improving living standards
Seven Year Plan
- The plan introduced a 40-hour working week and promised a 40% pay rise by 1965
- The goal was to "Catch Up and Overtake the US by 1970"
- The plan saw a mass expansion of the chemical industry, producing plastics, fertilizers, and artificial fibers, leading to an overall increase in consumer goods
Scientific Achievements
- The Soviet Union showcased its advancements at the 1958 World Fair
- The launch of Sputnik and Sputnik 2 in 1957 caused fear in the US, and the Soviet Union led the space race until 1961, when it sent the first man to space, and 1963, when it sent the first woman to space
- The Soviet Union's economic growth rate was 10% per year from 1958 to 1964, then slowed to 7.5% per year
Agriculture
- The price paid for grain procurement was increased, while targets, quotas, and taxes on private plots and peasants were decreased, incentivizing peasant work
- Efforts were made to improve living standards on collective farms, including connecting them to the power grid and encouraging the use of chemical fertilizers and farm machinery
- The Virgin Land Scheme aimed to cultivate land in western Siberia and northern Kazakhstan, but climate conditions were not taken into account, leading to poor harvests and the need to import grain
- The growth of maize was encouraged to combat food shortages, but the public was not enthusiastic about cornflakes
Improvement in Living Standards
- There was a significant increase in consumer goods, including radios, TVs, sewing machines, and fridges
- Compulsory voluntary subscriptions to the State were abolished in 1958, and taxes aimed at bachelors and childless couples were removed
- Wage differentials between the highest and lowest were smaller than in any other industrialized country
- Trade Unions were allowed to take a more active role in employment negotiations
- Improvements in technology developments made public transport more comfortable and easier for workers
- Education, medicine, and welfare services became more readily available
Decline
- While cars became more common, they were still beyond the means of ordinary people and reserved for Party officials
- Living standards still lagged behind those in most industrialized countries, with the quality of goods far worse than in the West
This quiz covers the economic reforms introduced by Nikita Khrushchev, including cuts on military spending, the Sixth Five Year Plan, and the Seven Year Plan. It also explores the goals of improving living standards and 'catching up' with the US.
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