Eugene Evtushenko: every mono-town of Bashkortostan has its own prospects of development

The problem of mono-towns is actively ventilated in Russia now because those territories, where only one town-forming enterprise is present, turn out to be the least protected of all. As a rule, such enterprises specialize themselves in manufacturing of just one sort of production and in the period of crisis they face serious difficulties, as well as the whole town because according to the definition of Russian Ministry of regional development mono-towns are the territories, where there is one or a group of technologically connected enterprises, either manufacturing up to 50% of production or where 25% of able-bodied population work. What have to be done with these enterprises – should they be reoriented or these towns have to be resettled? Minister of economic development RB Eugene Evtushenko answered these questions today.

According to him about 400 territories are admitted the mono-towns in Russia but the situation in these towns is quite different. There are the towns, which enterprises produce the unique machines and, as a rule, their problems are connected either with the breaking-ff of their partnership relations or with inefficient management. These towns may be called the sites for innovations, because investments promise high economic effect. Situation in other mono-towns is far fr om perspective.

The Ministry of regional development RF determines three groups of mono-towns: 17 towns face rather difficult situation (there are no such towns in Bashkortostan), the situation can be called pre-crisis in 60 Russian towns and this situation can be aggravated if the situation in Russian economics becomes more complicated (the town of Belebey in Bashkortostan stands in this list), and in 250 Russian mono-towns the Ministry just monitors the state of things because situation there is rather stable.

12 territories in Bashkortostan can be regarded as mono-towns. 16% of population live there and they produce 25% of the internal gross product. According to M-r Evtushenko the state of things in our Republic is much better than in Russia on average, nonetheless these territories face certain problems.

Thus, Blagoveshensk, Utchaly, Salavat and Beloretsk are regarded as stable mono-towns and Russian Ministry of regional development just monitors the situation there. The second group includes Belebey and Neftekamsk, wh ere the situation is rather stable but it directly depends upon the changes in the Russian motor-car market. Thus, in order to minimize possible negative tendencies JSC “NEFAZ” and the plant “AVTONORMAL” in Belebey are busy with diversification of their productions now.

The third group includes Kumertau, Baimak, Raevsky and Chishmy and here according to M-r Evtushenko new investments and new town-forming enterprises are necessary.

The fourth category includes closed towns of Agidel and Mejgorie and the majority of problems there have to be solved at the federal level due to their specifics.

Nonetheless, as Eugene Evtushenko says, no mono-towns in Bashkortostan will be resettled and about 30 billion rubles required in the course of several years to solve their problems. In particular, about 7-8 billion rubles of investments are required from the federal center (Bashkortostan intends to obtain this money through participation in various federal contests and programs) and one should attract private investments too, since the region is rather attractive for investors, including foreign ones. But in order to make foreign business more active, the regions have to be provided with the right of lawful initiatives concerning establishment of special economic zones. “The federal center understands that quite clearly” – M-r Evtushenko said.

In a whole, as Eugene Evtushenko said, we have the understanding what happens in these towns and we have the ways of solution and concrete projects, able to improve the situation in Bashkir mono-towns.