16.07.09

Problems experienced by single-industry towns in Russia can be solved not just by paying back wages and keeping the jobs, but by creating up-to-date and competitive enterprises there, Russian presidential aide Arkady Dvorkovich said.

"The presidential chief of staff chaired a meeting with the plenipotentiary representatives in the federal districts today. They discussed mainly single-industry towns. Work is underway to stabilise the economic situation, primarily the social situation in these towns," Dvorkovich said.

The participants in the meeting came to the conclusion that it is necessary not only to invest in the preservation of jobs for one-company towns, but also to use all available mechanisms for their revitalisation and reconstruction, taking them to a new level of work.

"The plenipotentiary representatives put forth a number of proposals aimed at preserving social stability and improving the competitiveness of enterprises working in these towns in order not just to preserve jobs, but to make sure these they become strong competitive innovative enterprises in the future," Dvorkovich said.

In his opinion, it is necessary to use all available mechanisms that are not fully utilised now, including state guarantees and bankruptcy proceedings.

"Existing mechanisms should be used in full, for example state guarantees and financial revitalisation to get rid of the fear of bankruptcy and improve the work of an enterprise through financial revitalisation," the aide said.

He noted that at the time of crisis any place in the world could be called problematic, and Russia is not an exception.

"We should work and understand what result we want to achieve. The situation in Pikalevo and other places will change gradually, not overnight. Back wages can be paid overnight, but it takes more serious effort to make an enterprise truly competitive," the official said.

According to the Institute of Regional Policy, there are 460 single-industry towns in Russia (almost 40 percent of the total). They account for 25 percent of the urban population in the country.

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Source: Itar-Tass