Agenda: write-off of regional budget loan debt, support for entrepreneurs in Crimea and Sevastopol, subsidised rail tariffs for agricultural product transportation, federal budget execution results for the first half of the year.
Mikhail Mishustin’s opening remarks:
Government meeting
Government meeting
Government meeting
Good afternoon, colleagues.
Before we turn to the main agenda of today’s Government meeting, I would like to highlight the decision taken to support those constituent entities of the Russian Federation that are investing in projects critical to the development of the regions and of the country as a whole.
This decision concerns the write-off of two-thirds of their budget loan debt, as instructed by the President.
Over the past two and a half years, systematic work has been undertaken in this area. As you know, more than 70 regions have already taken advantage of this programme, investing over a quarter of a trillion roubles in their economies. A number of initiatives have received the necessary funding, including the modernisation of public transport, the relocation of residents from dilapidated housing, the construction of utility infrastructure, and many other important tasks and challenges requiring urgent attention. This also includes assistance to our defenders, who are safeguarding the country’s interests during the special military operation.
We will now reduce the federal budget debt of the Tomsk and Yaroslavl regions by a total of almost 5 billion roubles. We hope this will strengthen their economic base and help them deliver on their key programmes.
I would also like to address assistance to entrepreneurs in Crimea and Sevastopol. The President has specifically emphasised the need to pay close attention to the development of these Russian regions, strengthening their economic potential and industrial base.
Russia’s southern regions are currently facing significant challenges, so it is essential to support both people and businesses. To preserve the workforce, a decision has been taken to defer the payment of insurance premiums for organisations operating in Crimea and Sevastopol. This benefit will be available to manufacturing, agricultural, and construction companies, as well as hotels and resorts, children’s recreation camps, and the food service industry.
This additional assistance will allow entrepreneurs facing challenging circumstances to reduce their financial burden and use the freed-up funds for operating expenses and employee salaries.
Today’s agenda also includes support for the agricultural sector. A key factor in its sustainability is the strict and consistent fulfilment of previously concluded contracts for the supply of agricultural products to recipients.
The President noted that the development of sustainable partnerships with friendly countries is progressing successfully.
However, logistics in the Azov-Black Sea basin remain challenging. Work is underway to reroute cargo flows. In order to reduce costs for agricultural producers, we will allocate more than 9.5 billion roubles. These funds will go to the railway sector to compensate for the costs of transporting agricultural products at preferential rates, helping maintain stability in the domestic market for agricultural products, raw materials, and food. This will also enable us to fully meet our export commitments.
There is global demand for Russian grain, oilseeds, and other agricultural products. The share of processed goods in our export structure is growing, creating jobs not only in agriculture but also in a range of related industries.
It is important that the Ministry of Agriculture continues to respond promptly to emergencies and remains ready to provide assistance to both agricultural producers and the regions when necessary.
Today, we will also review the results of federal budget execution for the first half of the year.
Despite the challenges we are facing, the Russian economy continues to grow. Overall, GDP increased by 0.6 percent from January through June, reaching nearly 102 trillion roubles in nominal terms. Industrial production also continued to grow, building on the strong growth rates recorded in previous years.
These results have contributed to higher budget revenues, which exceeded 18.64 trillion roubles, significantly surpassing the forecast.
Importantly, the structure of budget revenues is also changing. Non-oil and gas revenues now account for more than 80 percent of the total. This reflects the ongoing diversification of the economy toward sectors generating higher added value.
As for expenditures, we have accelerated efforts to address a number of important priorities, including social support for our citizens and ways to promote various industrial sectors as well as scientific and technological development.
