14 january 2012

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin meets with Head of the Republic of Bashkortostan Rustem Khamitov

Participants:
The meeting focused on socio-economic development in the republic over the past year, which the prime minister assessed as adequate, especially in industry, agriculture and construction, with results exceeding the national average. The prime minister also drew Mr Khamitov’s attention to the low growth of wages in education and instructed him to address the issue.

Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Are you satisfied with the results?

Rustem Khamitov: Yes, we are, Mr Putin. The republic did well in 2011. Here are the key results (shows materials) that I would like to show you. As for the gross regional product, we will reach about 110% growth, which is above the national average.

Vladimir Putin: 9.1.

Rustem Khamitov: Yes, this stood for November. We will add the figure for December and the result will be quite good. The gross regional product will amount to around 940-950 billion roubles. This means that in 2012 it is sure to reach 1 trillion roubles.

Vladimir Putin: Excellent.

Rustem Khamitov: Next comes industrial output: 109.7%, that is almost 110%, as of November. This figure will also increase. We hold strong positions: our republic’s company profits are the highest in the country. We are working hard in this area, making sure companies submit their reports as required by the law. Over 80% enterprises are profitable. In fact, this is the main source of our tax revenues.

We have improved the situation in agriculture following last year’s drought and sinkhole collapse. Now it is not just stable, it is superstable. We have harvested over 3 million tonnes of grain, which accounts for a two-year forage reserve. So we have no problems with hibernation. Neither did we have any problems with the sowing campaign. We helped farmers in 2011 by subsidising fuel jointly with the federal budget and helped them acquire seeds.

The construction industry is also doing well. This year we will exceed the 100-billion milestone and reach 105-107 billion, as of November. Growth for 2011 will amount to 110%. The construction sector has revived, expanded and is performing well now. Hence, we have fulfilled our commitments with regard to new housing. We have commissioned 2.1 million square metres of housing, with 75% being one-family homes. This is also because we build residential developments and people build well in rural areas. We provide help, allocate sites and build the infrastructure: water, gas and electricity. This yields results. We expect to put up 2.35 million square metres next year, and in 2015 we should achieve 3 million square metres with a population of 4 million, which accounts for 0.75 square metres per person a year.

Capital investment totals about 103-104%. The average wage has grown considerably, by 112%. Real wages have grown by 2.5%. Growth for 2011 will amount to 3-3.5%. We expect stable growth. We must bear in mind that 40% of the republic’s population lives in rural areas. Unfortunately, wages tend to be lower in agriculture, and we can’t compensate for that through industry alone. This was the case in the Soviet times as well, but now we are gradually catching up with the national average.

Foreign trade is growing. Our companies export oil refining products, petrochemicals and chemicals. The volume is considerable, almost $12 billion.

As for taxes, we generate over 300 billion roubles of taxes a year. This is the amount that is collected in the republic. This is paid to the federal budget and this is what remains in the republic (shows graphs). Certainly, we would like this amount to increase. We are working to increase the tax base.

Overall, real incomes aren’t bad either. Wages in education and at pre-school institutions were a complicated issue. We have issued a directive to increase the salaries by 1,000 roubles once. In 2011, we increased them two more times. As of the end of 2011, we will bring the average wages up to 10,000, though this is not much yet.

Vladimir Putin: As of the end of 2011?

Rustem Khamitov: 10,000, as of the end of 2011.

Vladimir Putin: That is not much.

Rustem Khamitov: There are a lot of kindergartens and many people employed there. The republic is large. We have already reached a good figure at schools…

Vladimir Putin: You should reach the country’s average level this year.

Rustem Khamitov: Yes, we should. Maybe, a bit lower.

Vladimir Putin: You should raise the wages at pre-school institutions. The difference is very big.

Rustem Khamitov: I agree, this is a problem for us. I would like to add that next year we will build 52 new kindergartens, which means there will be even more kindergarten teachers. There have never been such construction volumes in the republic, even in the Soviet times. This year we have commissioned new kindergratens with places for 10,500 children. We are gradually resolving this problem in various ways.

Now let’s proceed to healthcare modernisation. We have planned a considerable amount, 15.5 billion roubles, over the period of two years, in proportion to our population. On the other hand, we must bring our healthcare in line with modern standards. We have received some help. We have been carrying out this work and making steady progress. Almost half a billion roubles, 490 million roubles, were allocated for capital repairs last year.

Vladimir Putin: How many healthcare facilities do you have?

Rustem Khamitov: There are 11 interregional healthcare institutions. We will renovate them, partly using the funds allocated from the budget. We will spend four billion roubles to purchase various medical equipment, including computer tomography, X-ray and ultrasound equipment.

Vladimir Putin: Do you hold tenders?

Rustem Khamitov: We hold electronic tenders. This is an electronic platform, the prices are recommended by the manufacturers and are even lower in some cases. We have organised things well in this respect, so this is very economical. We have saved over a billion roubles with electronic tenders this year. Further, information systems. That is routine work, and it has been going well. Implementing the standards will require 10 billion over the next two years. No doubt we will complete this work. In addition, the average wages will rise too, so we won’t feel ashamed for our doctors’ wages. The gap is still large for paramedical staff, but this is a separate issue. The difference is considerable but we will work to bring their wages up to the required level.

Vladimir Putin: You haven’t reduced the gaps.

Rustem Khamitov: Not yet. Unfortunately…

Vladimir Putin: The wages have increased in both cases, but you must continue working on this issue.

Rustem Khamitov: Further, the authorities are becoming more attentive to people’s needs. The authorities must be closer to the people. We work, listen, try to address their immediate problems: building entrances, the street, the yard, lighting, housing and utilities, transport etc. We have useful experience in the field: we have established 12,000 housing committees in residential buildings. These people represent the residents’ interests where there are no homeowners’ associations. The process is going well. We even pay a little to the chairpersons of residential councils, about 1,000 – 1,500 roubles, and the people are working.

They review how the funds are spent, how much is spent on renovation, painting or roofing. This is a good experience. In addition, we launched support programmes for rural areas. We have 819 villages in the republic and we allocated 200,000 roubles to each. This is a considerable amount for them: they can repair fences around houses or cemeteries, or mend roads. Our direct work with villages has turned out to be very efficient. People support us in this respect.

We have advanced in various sports events. In 2012, Ufa will host the World Junior Ice Hockey Championship. We hope to win the silver medal this year and some good medals next year due to our joint efforts, and we would like to invite you to attend. In 2012, we will hold the Summer Biathlon World Championship. We are getting ready for it and everything is going well. In February 2013, we will hold winter games for children – these are the Olympic Games for children aged between 10 and 14. They will involve 1,000 participants from 30 countries, the preparations are underway too.