Viktor Zubkov conveyed a message of greetings from Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to the delegates and guests of the congress.
He also said, in part:
"Over the past few years – today we will sum up the trade union's work from 2005 to 2010 – the state and the government have demonstrated qualitatively new approaches to the development of the agro-industrial sector.
"Legislatively, clear legal principles have been laid down for agrarian policy. The Law on the Development of Agriculture has been adopted, the priority national project Development of the Agro-Industrial Sector has been implemented, the State Programme for the Development of Agriculture and Regulation of Farm Produce Markets for 2008-2012 is being implemented and the food security doctrine has been approved. The conditions have been created for solving basic production, financial and economic problems for the sector's development.
"As a result, in 2006 through 2009, the industry attracted about 1.1 trillion roubles in loans from Russian banks, while financial support for agriculture from the federal budget totalled 331 billion roubles. Even within the rigid limits of the 2010 and 2011 budgets, the government has financed the state programme at 108 billion and 125 billion roubles, respectively.
"And the industry is responding with good results. Since 2006, the country's farm production has increased almost 20%. This enabled Russia's agriculture to retain the positive dynamics of development during the global financial crisis of 2008-2009 and the extreme drought of this year.
"It is gratifying to note that systemic changes and measures of quick response of last year and this year were partly based on the proposals and initiatives expressed by you, the members of the Agro-Industrial Sector's Trade Union. Trilateral commissions for the regulation of socio-labour relations and the participation of your representatives in the work of the government commission on the agro-industrial sector have become good platforms for such dialogue.
"As a result of these cooperative efforts, the Russian agro-industrial sector has become a growth point, turning into a promising and high-tech branch of the Russian economy.
"Now some objectives for the near future. As early as next year, we are to work out a new five-year state programme for the period from 2012 to 2017. Its priorities include rural social development, improvement in the quality of life in the villages, improvement of the standards of labour relations and ensuring the social protection of workers in this field. Our goals include increased wages and we want to continue to draw young and skilled specialists into agriculture.
"I look to the active participation of your trade union in the work of the new state programme. And I am confident that the results and recommendations of today's congress will contribute to the solution of problems facing us."