Interviewed by Maria Sidelnikova , exclusively to VK
At a recent meeting of the government commission on the North Caucasus Federal District in Pyatigorsk, Prime Minister Medvedev promised that the Cabinet will take a careful control of spending in the North Caucasus. According to Finance Minister Anton Siluanov , tax breaks in the North Caucasus are on average two times greater compared with other regions in the Russian Federation; in addition, there are too many bureaucrats in the North Caucasus Federal District. Average cost of officials in Russia is 1.5 thousand rubles per one thousand inhabitants, and in Chechnya – 3 thousand, in Kabardino -Balkaria - 2 thousand rubles.
Director of the Institute of Economics of RAS Ruslan Grinberg commented on the situation with possible funding cuts in the North Caucasus entities for VK.
- Do we need to cut spending in the North Caucasus ? Do you think that the burden on the federal budget related to funding the republics of North Caucasus Federal District is too high?
- The main problem is not the amount of money but how it is spent. Here, perhaps , there are some reserves . As for the amount, it seems to me that there are no specific distortions . The problem, of course, is the funds that should be spent for the benefit of the people and not go into the pockets of the already wealthy people. This is a problem, but its solution does not depend on the Ministry of Finance but on the general situation in the republics. And there are provisions to prevent misappropriation. I do not think that the amount of funds for the republics of the North Caucasus is a problem.
- Will the amount of funds be eventually reduced?
- I am one of those experts who do not believe that this cost reduction is an actual problem. Today there was a panic about the fact that the growth rate has dramatically reduced, and the country is involved in stagnation, and some nervous people even think that a recession will occur soon. I'm not nervous, and I think that we will be able to avoid a recession. Of course, this all leads to a tight budget, because there will be no such increase in revenues. But I still would not fell into a panic here.
We do have very good prices for oil. And apparently, we will continue to have a world prices at a consistently high level due to the deterioration of the international situation in connection with Syria and Iran. It must be hard to achieve some harmonization in the foreseeable future, but if oil prices remain at 105-110-115 dollars, and probably it is quite likely, we can stop worrying about spending cuts.
- Could the Caucasus republics stop being subsided?
- I do not think it can happen quickly, but it's real. The main problem is jobs. In the North Caucasus, the unemployment rate reaches half of the working population. Therefore, we must take care of our priorities here. Just a structural policy must be strictly adhered to, though it is only easy to say this. I am aware that this is a very difficult thing. But, in my opinion , there is no alternative except for vocational education plus growth point.
- How do you assess the economic prospects for the development of the South Caucasus republics?
- We see more or less significant economic growth in Azerbaijan. I have been there recently. I did not recognize Baku. This, of course, is great. Development has been quite powerful. And it seems to me that they manage somehow to spend this resource not only on the elite of society, but also on broad sections of the people. As for Georgia, there, of course, the situation is tense, but on the other hand, it is still better than it was several years ago. It was apparently a nadir. And the same can be said about Armenia. Although, of course, there is no such rapid development, there is no economic miracle, but, thank God, there is no stagnation, there is still some growth. Small and medium-sized businesses develop. Much probably depends on Russia. There should still be a warm relationship between us. I am very impressed by the improvement of the situation of Georgia in connection with the election of the new Prime Minister. It is clear that something is happening. "Borjomi" appeared here, as well as good wines. But this is symbolic. This is just the beginning, but I hope that everything will continue.
