The Day of National Priorities "Efficient and Competitive Economy" is being held at the international exhibition and forum "Russia". The event is dedicated to the prospects for the development of various sectors of the economy, key aspects of interaction between business and government.
The main event of the national day was the plenary session "Efficient and competitive Economy", where Acting First Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Andrey Belousov, Acting Minister of Economic Development of Russia Maxim Reshetnikov, as well as the Governor of the Murmansk Region Andrey Chibis made speeches.
The head of the region spoke about the development of the industrial complex in the Murmansk region and the main investment projects that will become a determining factor in the economic development not only of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation, but also of the whole country.
"For the first time in 33 years, we managed to achieve a migration increase: more people came to the region than left, the rate of population decline decreased seven times, and the natural population decline decreased by half. It is more difficult to fight for people in the north than in Moscow, so such indicators are a great victory for our team in five years of work," the head of the region stressed.
Andrey Chibis noted that large-scale projects implemented in the Murmansk region need qualified personnel, and therefore the team of the regional government faces the most important task – to "reverse the trend" of population decline.
"Over the past five years, GDP per capita in the Murmansk Region has increased 2.5 times, and the total investment has already exceeded 1 trillion rubles. The Murmansk Region is a leader in attracting investments among the Arctic regions. The removal of logistical constraints played an important role in this issue. We are developing the Murmansk Transport Hub, one of the key trunk projects that provides access to the world ocean and is a factor in the development of the Northern Sea Route. This is a very difficult project, and it is important that the transport corridor continues to work. Last year, Vladimir Putin launched a working movement on a new railway, thanks to which the port infrastructure is now developing on the western shore of the Kola Bay. A new decree of the Government of the Russian Federation has been signed today, which expands the boundaries of priority development territories in the Far East and the Arctic zone. In particular, thanks to this, another port terminal will be built in the Murmansk region. In addition, this year we are launching a new port "Lavna", – said Andrey Chibis.
The most important task, which is being solved jointly with the Government of the Russian Federation on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is to increase the carrying capacity of the railway, which will ensure safe access to the world ocean.
"The second main investment project is the gasification of the Murmansk region. This is a completely different technological structure of our industry. Russian scientists note that the Kola Peninsula has the entire periodic table, from apatite concentrate, from which we provide fertilizers to a third of the world, to rare earth metals. Therefore, we are actively engaged in projects for the gasification of the region and the production of LNG in accordance with the decisions taken by the President of Russia," Andrei Chibis said.
The head of the region also noted that geological exploration on the Kola Peninsula has demonstrated large reserves of lithium, the Russian Federation can enter the top three countries in terms of reserves of this raw material.
"Our task is to improve skills and income growth. Preferential regimes – the TOP "Capital of the Arctic" and the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation – show their effectiveness. These are unique benefits that encourage large investors to invest money and create powerful projects. One of them is the Center for the Construction of large–capacity marine structures in Belokamenka, which appeared "from scratch" in the rock in just five years. There are no analogues anywhere in the world," the head of the region noted.
Regional support measures are being successfully implemented in the Murmansk Region, which make it possible to ensure the volume of investments.
"It is important that our companies invest money in the cities of their presence. Over the past five years, the volume of investments has increased fivefold. We are also actively developing small and medium-sized businesses. The number of people employed in private business is growing – this is a service without which it is impossible to improve the quality of life. Since 2021, investment officers have appeared in all municipalities of the Murmansk Region, who manually deal with emerging issues," Andrei Chibis said.
At the end of the report, the head of the region stressed that the slogan "To live in the North" should become a "trend" that will make positive adjustments to all spheres of life in the Murmansk region.
/ Ministry of Information Policy of the Murmansk Region /
Photo: Anatoly Medved / Fotohost-RIA Novosti news Agency