Izvestia: "Regional Evaluation will include eight indicators instead of 300”
The board will review how well the regions carry out their instructions based on new criteria for evaluating their work. Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, who was charged with making the list of criteria more concise, told Izvestia that by the end of the month, the evaluation system for the regions would include only eight indicators instead of the current 300.
Earlier this year, Mr Putin instructed the government to make the evaluation system more concise. The commission charged with this task, led by Dmitry Kozak, has taken a radical approach.
Minister of Economic Development Elvira Nabiullina told about four statistical indicators. The first involves the growth of private investment, excluding state investment. The second indicator will focus on attracting foreign direct investment. The third will reflect labour productivity growth. The fourth indicator concerns the rate of change in the small- and medium-sized business sales.
Mr Kozak told Izvestia that other indicators include life expectancy, the level of unemployment and salary growth. "If investment is increasing, living standards will improve as well. and what else do we need?" he said, "We still have certain disagreements on that, but we will meet on the 9th and agree on a solution."
The deputy prime minister said that within two weeks of the meeting, these criteria would legally come into force.
Ms Nabiullina suggested the agency take part in monitoring the way the regions work on improving of their performance. Investment climate indicators should be included in the general performance assessment and these criteria will be used to issue grants to Russia's regions.
"We must improve many state procedures. Achieving this goal depends on how well various agencies and middle managers implement the instructions they are given. We will create a corresponding system to evaluate the work of the regional governments," Mr Putin said.
The prime minister instructed the SIA to be a part of developing the evaluation system for those in authority because in most cases individual leaders determine the efficiency of a procedure.
SIA director, Andrei Nikitin, said that the investment climate standards had been used in pilot programmes in six regions, and ten more regions are expected to join the programme.
"We are moving at a fast pace. Expert groups made up of business people, and local business associations, have been established to assess our progress and monitor the implementation of this project in each region," Mr Nikitin reported to the prime minister.
Mr Nikitin also told Izvestia that SIA's priority is not to control but improve the business climate in the regions, working together with the local business community.
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Earlier this year, Mr Putin instructed the government to make the evaluation system more concise.
Anastasia Novikova
