VK is publishing a series of articles devoted to the creation, approval and perspectives of the Development Strategy of the North Caucasus Federal District up to 2025. The strategy has ambitious aims. By 2025 it is planned to achieve an annual growth of the regional production in the district by 7.7%, to increase the income of the regional budget fourfold and salaries more than twofold to 23,800 rubles. It is also planned to create over 400,000 jobs.
The creators of the strategy object to the opponents that the state will invest only at the first stage. By this time investment climate will improve by finding new financial stimuli for the economic development, attracting means from the federal investment fund, state banks and private investors. Only when perspective industrial and infrastructural projects are started, the governing and legislative system is improved we can talk about help realizing investment projects and large-scale social programmes.The authorities agree that now private investors as Russian as foreign prefer other places to North Caucasus. The local business has no governing and financial resources to realize plans with serious perspective. The youth forums (like last year in the republics of the NCFD) are supposed to help include the youth into the human resources, give them the work at the governing services, to help them to get basics of management and business. By the way, the authorities are to help the businessmen as well. Support of credit cooperation, microfinancing, guarantee funds, business-incubators should stimulate creating new companies and get out the shadow already existing business.Moscow underlines staking on support of those trades which are natural for the economics of North Caucasus, have traditions and based on the real ground - geographical, natural, human resources, and can generate new jobs. They are constructing, agriculture, tourism, SPA services, recycling and especially development of infrastructure, energy and thermoelectric energy.But the biggest project requiring a lot of federal money indeed is including the NCFD into the system of interregional and international trade relations and strategic projects. In the region federal highway "Caucasus" is to be reconstructed, the road between Kislovodsk and Elbrus, also roundabouts in Nalchik, Stavropol, Vladikavkaz, Mozdok, Gudermes and Beslan are supposed to be built. All main airports - Magas in Ingushetia, Beslan in North Ossetia, Minvody and Shpakovskoye in Stavropol should be rebuilt, a new one will be constructed in Nalchik. As for international infrastructure, it is a road between Cherkessk and Sukhumi and more commonly incorporation of the region into the international transit way "North-South" which will link Russia and Europe to the countries of the Persian Gulf and Central Asia.Already Gazprom, RZD and the Federal network company joined the infrastructural plans, they will carry out projects in North Caucasus. According to the premier Putin, "in the sphere of energy the company "Rusgidro" will finish constructing the hydro-plant Kashkhatau in Kabardino-Balkaria in 2010. By 2015 the hydro-power plant in Zelenchuk (Karachay-Cherkessia) and in Zaramag (North Ossetia) will start working at full capacity; one plant will be finished in Dagestan. 5,5 thousand km of electricity cables will be built and restored. All this is groundwork for future economic growth, creating of new enterprises".Presenting the strategy the president's envoy in the NCFD, Alexandr Khloponin, asked the premier to approve organizing the festival "Caucasus Games" in October. It will take place in Karachay-Cherkessia as a part of preparing to the 2014 Olympics. The aim of the festival is to popularize national sports and protect cultural heritage of the North Caucasus nations. As the head of Karachay-Cherkessia Boris Ebzeyev stated after the idea was accepted: "Sport and culture, fair fight and mutual respect of the nations are very typical for Caucasus. We are ready to show our level of sportsmanship, traditions and peculiarities of the national culture".
Pavel Martynov. Exclusively for VK.
