9 january 2012

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin meets with Kaluga Region Governor Anatoly Artamonov

Participants:
The meeting focused on socio-economic development in the region, which the prime minister assessed as acceptable, and its regional product growth rate – which is one of the highest in the world. Special attention was paid to social issues, particularly to kindergartens catering to almost 90% of Kaluga’s pre-school children, and boasting an even better quality of service than that on offer in Europe.

Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, Mr Artamonov.

Anatoly Artamonov: Good afternoon, Mr Putin.

Vladimir Putin: How are things going? Overall, the region performed quite well this year. Industrial output grew 30%. What about the regional product?

Anatoly Artamonov: The regional product: 15%.

Vladimir Putin: Among the best results worldwide.

Anatoly Artamonov: But it was 21% last year.

Vladimir Putin: 15% isn’t bad either. I see you experienced a slight fall in capital investment.

Anatoly Artamonov: Mr Putin, we will end up at last year’s levels. Because once a project has been implemented, they issue a performance report. For instance, the electrometallurgical works will be brought into operation...

Vladimir Putin: In 2012?

Anatoly Artamonov: Yes, in April 2012. And that’s 14.5 billion roubles right there. Also, the Peugeot Citroën plant will launch full cycle on April 4. You recall we opened the Volkswagen plant? The same kind of plant. They will report, too. Lafarge is building a cement plant...

Vladimir Putin: That is a major project.

Anatoly Artamonov: 1,200 builders are working there. They will also report..

Vladimir Putin: There are a great many major construction projects. That’s why the regional unemployment rate is lower than the national average.

Anatoly Artamonov: Yes, the unemployment rate is about 50% lower in our region.

Vladimir Putin: And the agriculture sector seems fine.

Anatoly Artamonov: Growth is about 8%. Mr Putin, I expect a breakthrough in agriculture in the next five years. I have set the following objective: not a single square metre of uncultivated land. This will doubtless be difficult, not because we aren’t in a position to cultivate the land. There’s no problem there, investors are quite enthusiastic about the agriculture sector, to some extent, they are queuing up to get involved. But we will have to deal with owners, because there are some owners who take the “I won’t use it – and nor will anybody else” approach. So we will deal with them now.

Vladimir Putin: They don't take an active role?

Anatoly Artamonov: That’s it.

Vladimir Putin: I reviewed the social sector: you increased the average wages for teachers and doctors.

Anatoly Artamonov: Yes. Teachers make about 23,000 per month now. When I last met you, I promised...

Vladimir Putin: The region's average is even slightly above the national average.

Anatoly Artamonov: Our region has seen the nation’s largest rise in teachers’ pay. Look, doctors, on average, earn 32,500...

Vladimir Putin: You know, averages involve a range of figures. There are also those who really do not earn very much.

Anatoly Artamonov: You know, Mr Putin, those who work, who improve themselves, who are in-demand, earn well.

Vladimir Putin: This is undoubtedly the right approach, but social justice should prevail. We should take the average level into account but we must also be more attentive to the issue as it relates to different categories of specialists.

Anatoly Artamonov: It goes without saying that we must think about those who earn less, and we will think about them...

Vladimir Putin: I have reviewed the figures, and they are quite good overall. But I would like to draw your attention to certain categories of specialists.

Anatoly Artamonov: Absolutely.

Vladimir Putin: ... because some earn quite well, especially institutional directors, but we must above all focus on specialists, right?

Anatoly Artamonov: Absolutely.

Vladimir Putin: Good. What about pre-school institutions?

Anatoly Artamonov: This year we have cut the kindergarten waiting list by 2,000. There is not much left to do here. I believe that it will take us a year at most to reach the required level of provision.

I would like to report on what our children do while they are at kindergarten. On quality of care. Foreign specialists’ children are in classes in our schools and they are very pleased. And most importantly, they are delighted with the kindergartens. Neither Germany, nor France can boast this level of service for children in kindergartens. Our administration heads spent a week in France (every year we send them on training courses) in several municipal areas. They said that if we had the same kindergartens as in France, with mats that serve as dining-room, play-room, bedroom, they put bed linen on them for that, and so on, they would long since have been closed down.

Vladimir Putin: That’s in France?

Anatoly Artamonov: Yes, in France. We have recently built a kindergarten. It was built by an Austrian company that won the tender. The founders are Austrians. One of them said: "Mr Artamonov, if I built a kindergarten like this in Austria, people from all over Europe would come to see it."

Vladimir Putin: We must maintain this quality of work. We should follow the examples of our neighbours and partners, and create similar good examples here for children, first of all.

Anatoly Artamonov: I believe that our citizens must be kept appraised of both the advantages and disadvantages. And this is one area where we have the advantage, and a very considerable one. Almost 90% children attend kindergartens in our region.

Vladimir Putin: Unfortunately, on a nationwide scale we face a deficit of kindergarten provision. This even increased a little recently. It is great that this problem has been solved in your region. I hope that your colleagues in other Russian regions will take similar action in response to this clear need to solve problems. And that they will follow the genuinely very encouraging example of Kaluga in tackling this issue, rather than that of some European states.

Anatoly Artamonov: Thank you.