VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
I chaired a meeting today on the training of specialists to be in high demand in the labour market. Research universities came under discussion among other matters. I know proposals have been made to start such universities on the basis of local higher educational institutions in the Tomsk Region, too. How is the job going on?
Viktor Kress: The whole country will have no more than two dozen such universities, as far as I know.
Vladimir Putin: Yes, 10-15.
Viktor Kress: Only one of them, two at most, will base in the Tomsk Region. I don't think more will win the contest. All told, the region has six eligible higher education institutions, and four of them are unique. As we have decided, if one of them wins, it will get a million and a half or two million roubles to launch relevant programmes. If four institutes are involved, they can join hands to cope with ten or more programmes to train specialists in various innovation spheres-in particular, medicine, biology, IT and biotechnologies-in short, what is in the greatest market demand and corresponds to the specialisation of our special technical commissioning zone.
Vladimir Putin: So several institutes should merge?
Viktor Kress: No, it will not be a legal merger but mere joint work on particular programmes. A legal merger would have more cons than pros.
Vladimir Putin: We will see. You have had a good project for a nuclear medical centre.
Viktor Kress: Yes. I have visited Ms Tatyana Golikova today, and we have talked it over. The federal budget is in an adverse situation now. That's clear. There is not enough money. But then, the centre costs were roughly estimated at 20 billion but we can make do with 8-10 billion, at most. We are clearing the site and making other preparatory jobs but we must be sure whether the project will be launched or has been frozen. It is extremely relevant beyond the Urals, Mr Putin.
Vladimir Putin: I see. What is the general situation? What do you think about social and economic developments?
Viktor Kress: We have many problems. Some say I am painting things blacker than they are-but it's impossible to gloss them over now.
Vladimir Putin: What we need is an objective picture.
Viktor Kress: Federally financed companies and agencies do not feel the entire burden yet because federal allocations to, let say, universities and research institutions have been earmarked for the whole year already. As for institutions funded out of the regional budget-education, health services, etc-we will spare no efforts to help them.
Development has dropped pace in many fields, but at least we have found a good way of repairing old wooden school buildings. The region has several dozen such buildings. We repaired four last year. If we build a new school, one pupil will cost half a million roubles in the region's south, close to Tomsk, and 700-800 thousand, close to a million, in the north. Repairs reduce the cost to 100,000 roubles or even less.
Vladimir Putin: How do you achieve such thrift?
Viktor Kress: We preserve wooden walls to replace only rotten logs, and add a warmth-keeping jacket with outside metal coating and plasterboard on the inside, so wood is protected from moisture on both sides to last 50-60 years. I have photographs here. I'll show them now. When we were starting repairs, everyone said we should build new schools instead-but the public eventually saw the results and are content now.
We repaired four schools last year, and are repairing another seven. We have received 70 million national project allocations from the federal budget plus 100 million out of the regional purse. The job is underway to finish by September 1. All schools must be ready for the new academic year. Some schools are under repair now, and some are working still. If we get another 60-70 million from the federal budget, we will cope with 11 or 12 schools out of the total 28, so old schools will last another 40-50 years. We need two years for all such repairs. Naturally, we pay due attention to fire safety.
Vladimir Putin: Good. Let us get back to employment. Have you got a regional programme?
Viktor Kress: Yes, we were among the first to have it approved.
Vladimir Putin: What are the costs?
Viktor Kress: 437 million roubles.
Vladimir Putin: When do you expect the money?
Viktor Kress: It is coming already.
Vladimir Putin: So you will start implementing the programme?
Viktor Kress: We are already starting personnel retraining.
Vladimir Putin: What does the programme envisage besides retraining?
Viktor Kress: New job opportunities and promoting small enterprise. Our programme is unique in one aspect-it includes small high-tech innovation enterprise. Such are its guidelines.
Vladimir Putin: Will these small companies base on major research centres?
Viktor Kress: Yes. There is another problem we are tackling outside the programme-promotion of private farming. I have agricultural education and so have been supervising the relevant programme since last year. The region was badly understocked for cattle. Now, things are improving a bit.
To start with, we helped households with five and more cows. Now, we will spread the assistance to households with three or more. They are entitled to pedigree livestock, fodder and suchlike. Putting it in a nutshell, we are reviving the kulaks. Well-to-do households provide jobs for people who cannot start farms of their own. Such farming is a kind of enterprise and commodity-oriented economy.
Vladimir Putin: Do you subsidise loan interest payments?
Viktor Kress: Yes, in many fields. We started it as early as 1993, beginning with small entrepreneurs. Now, we have earmarked 100 million roubles from the regional budget for mortgage subsidies, and are cutting bank interest rates by 7%.
Vladimir Putin: Who is entitled to such reduced rates?
Viktor Kress: Public sector employees. We might spread the arrangement to others step by step. Subsidies depend on recipients' income, and we intend to lower the threshold.
Vladimir Putin: Are you involved in the programme for supporting young families?
Viktor Kress: That is one of our top priorities.
