The main scientific and organizational units of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus are the branches of the Academy of Sciences, which unite academicians and corresponding members of the Academy of Sciences of one or several fields of science, coordinate the activities of scientific and other organizations of relevant areas of science assigned to the departments by the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. The department is headed by an academician-secretary who is a member of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences and is appointed by the decision of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences.

The NAS of Belarus has seven branches in its organizational structure:

The Department of the Academy of Sciences in its activities is accountable to the General Assembly, the Presidium and Bureau of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences, as well as the Chairman of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences within their competence and performs the following main functions:

• ensures the development and coordination of basic and applied research and development in relevant fields of science;
• makes proposals on the formation of programs of fundamental and applied research and development, monitors the progress of their implementation, evaluates the results of this research and development, as well as the level of training of scientific personnel in scientific organizations assigned to the department;
• develops proposals on the acceleration of scientific and technological progress and on the socio-economic development of the Republic of Belarus;
• analyzes the effectiveness of international scientific cooperation of scientific organizations assigned to the department;
• establishes and carries out scientific relations with ministries, other republican bodies of state administration, other state organizations subordinate (accountable) to the President of the Republic of Belarus or the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus, scientific organizations and institutions providing higher education, creative unions and associations of the Republic of Belarus and other states.

The supreme collegial management body of a branch of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus is the general meeting of the branch, whose members are: academician-secretary of the department; academicians and corresponding members in the department; heads of scientific organizations of the department that are not members of the Academy of Sciences; representatives of scientific organizations assigned to the department of the Academy of Sciences, as well as scientific organizations of ministries, other republican bodies of state administration, institutions providing higher education, by the profile of their scientific activities, elected to the General Meeting of the Academy of Sciences in accordance with the Charter of the NAS of Belarus; department secretary.

The session of the general meeting of the branch of the Academy of Sciences is convened as necessary, but at least twice a year. In the period between sessions of the general meeting of a department, the work of the department of the Academy of Sciences is headed by the office of the department, which is elected by the general meeting of the department on the recommendation of the academic secretary and whose composition is approved by the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences.