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
“The Russian Direct Investment Fund was founded to support big programmes of both foreign and Russian businesses. Leading representatives of the global investment community have agreed to join its international expert council. The fund has already received over $2 billion; its capital is projected to reach $10 billion in five years.”
“Russia needs to create all the necessary conditions for smart investments both in manufacturing and in high-tech development, so we need to expand freedom for bona fide entrepreneurial activities and to support those with clear and useful initiatives, which seek not to make a one-time profit, but to improve the quality of life of individual towns, cities and entire regions, while at the same time making profit from their economic activities, of course.”
“According to preliminary estimates of the Bank of Russia, the Russian economy has received over $27 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first six months of 2011. <…>Our main task now is to maintain this positive trend, while focusing on the quality of long-term investment to ensure that it is accompanied by new technology and innovations and the creation of modern enterprises and well paid high-tech jobs. I am confident that we are capable of reaching $60-$70 billion a year in foreign direct investment – I repeat, $60 to $70 billion a year – and achieving a positive balance between capital inflow and outflow in general.”
“We intend to draw up a ranking of the most attractive regions from an investment standpoint every year. The ranking will be based on the number of jobs created, the number of new enterprises started, the amount of investments brought in. These objective figures ought to become one of the key criteria for assessing governors' performance. And I believe that we need to introduce such assessment criteria at the municipal level as well.”
“We discussed our plans to bring down bureaucratic barriers and to improve government services for citizens and businesses. This also relates to streamlining the regulations for foreign investors in the strategic sectors of Russia’s economy. We need to get rid of inefficient or obviously excessive procedures and create the most favourable environment for companies that want to invest and put their expertise and resources in our economy.”
“It is especially important that foreign partners come to us with their long-term projects and invest money in Russian businesses and new facilities. According to preliminary data, foreign direct investment in Russia totalled more than $40 billion in 2010. Comparing this amount with 2009, we see a certain increase.”
“In conclusion, I would like to emphasise that we need to step up efforts to attract foreign investment to Russia’s economy. This is a task both for federal and regional authorities. And as soon as possible we need to reach the pre-crisis level of foreign direct investment per year – between $60 and $70 billion. Having done this, we will have to continue to build on our efforts and raise this bar even higher.”
“I can add that we will also keep improving investment legislation, and so I ask the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service to expedite the submission to the government of the second package of amendments for simpler procedures with foreign investors in the strategic sectors. Our objective now is to encourage investment activity as much as we can, making it a key factor in re-establishing the national economy. Foreign direct investments will play a big role here, of course. Russia should be an attractive long-term strategic investment destination.”
“We need direct foreign investment. And not just capital but so-called smart investment that requires a technology transfer and the creation of new quality jobs. Russia is open to foreign investment. At the same time, investment in non-strategic sectors requires no coordination. As far as strategic sectors are concerned, the authorisation procedures will be simplified considerably, just like we had agreed.”
“Only large private investments will allow us to attain the strategic goals of modernising the country, and not only in those sectors where business has long been actively progressing but also in the sectors that the government dominated until recently, in particular in the social sphere, in infrastructure and in strategic industries. No government action, budget resources or administrative decisions can replace the painstaking daily work of private businesses. It is the work of businesses that is changing the nature of our economy day by day, giving it a new, innovative face. Hundreds and even thousands of projects are implemented every year, and investments have reached tens of billions of dollars.”
