State guarantees will help to turn the North Caucasus into a tourist dream.
Russia plans to use state guarantees to promote the Caucasus brand and attract investors into the Caucasian republics that the majority associate with terrorism. A special government commission made a decision to this effect in Yessentuki.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin personally heads the Commission on the Socio-Economic Development of the North Caucasus Federal District (the government has two commissions of this kind, the second one – on the Far East – is supervised by First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov). This is no surprise because the government is paying special attention to the North Caucasus, Russia's youngest federal district. When the commission held its first meeting in late January, Putin tried to find out from officials why hundreds of billions of roubles allocated to the district bypass its treasury. The commission decided to hold its second meeting on site in Yessentuki.
The commission put the programme for developing territories on the agenda. As Presidential Envoy to the district, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Khloponin said, the government may discuss it in June. The programme must be realised from 2012 to 2025.
"This state programme must become a major instrument in resolving the district's socio-economic issues. It is designed to support business activity and new production lines in the North Caucasus, form a new, modern infrastructure and reduce unemployment, the district's worst headache," Putin emphasised. "It is very important to make sure that it makes a difference for every resident of the district."
Putin said once the programme is adopted all district's territories will have their own development plans with government support.
The programme's main idea is to develop the Caucasus brand. In other words, it is necessary to drastically change the attitude to these territories. They should be viewed not as an arena of hostilities and special operations but a unique recreation spot. Therefore, the development of tourism and health resorts in the North Caucasus has become part of this programme, in particular the establishment of the Arkhyz and Veduchi all-season health resorts and the development of the tourist spa area of Kavkazskiye Mineralnyye Vody (Caucasian Mineral Waters).
The industrial sector was not left out, either. There are plans to develop the iron-ore deposit in Kizil-Der and a chemical centre in the Stavropol Territory. This will help diminish the urgency of one of the region's major problems – unemployment. According to the official estimate, about 50,000 people have started their own business under the district's self-employment programme. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. Rosstat (Statistics of Russia) and the Health Ministry regularly put the district's republics into a black list of regions with growing unemployment. The plans voiced by Putin provide for hundreds of new jobs and the growth of salaries from 9,000 to 25,000 roubles.
Putin again raised the issue of promoting business activity in the district. He allotted a special role to the mechanism of state guarantees in this respect.
"This year alone the total sum will reach 50 billion roubles," Putin announced, adding that not everything was clear with money transfers in some republics.
This is a problem in Chechnya, for one, and the commission discussed it at its meeting in January.
"I know what is said regarding this matter. The Finance Ministry maintains that the projects have not been properly elaborated. Why don't you help them? Let the Ministry of Regional Development, the Economy Ministry and the Finance Ministry help them," Putin suggested. "It is necessary to make the most of the opportunities of development institutions. They should provide expert assistance to the business community in carrying out investment programmes."
By Anastasia Savinykh
3rd federal issue