The Governor began his report with the Year of the Family, which is being marked in 2024. The number of large families in the region has grown by 4,000 people in three years, to 23,000. The regional government offers 17 support programmes for such families, including regional maternity capital benefit and childbirth benefits, as well as a gift box for a newborn, with everything the new baby needs. Among other social policies, Mikhail Degtyarev mentioned the increase in the minimum wage and the rise in salaries for certain categories of workers.
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According to the governor, in order to support the special military operation, the region has formed three units – General Korff, Maxim Passar and Yerofei Khabarov, named in honour of famous people associated with the Far East. There are as many as 16 Heroes of Russia among the special operation fighters from the region: motorised riflemen, pilots, sailors, scouts, and National Guard members. A local facility manufactures the Yerofei buggies; the light all-terrain vehicles are being delivered to the front. Other companies repair engines and make drones. The region provides assistance to the city of Debaltsevo in the DPR, helping to restore or build kindergartens, schools, roads, a children's art centre, and a sports facility.
The Governor reported on the situation in the economy. In 2023, GRP amounted to 1.25 trillion rubles. The main drivers are manufacturing, primarily shipbuilding, aircraft construction, including combat aviation, metallurgy, and construction materials. The local extractive industries have shown a slight decline, but that was because of the record gold production of 28 tonnes the year before. The decrease is also due to the local ore’s expected depletion, but new deposits are being developed, so growth is expected this year.
The region’s trade has picked up, showing growth of 5.5 percent in 2023. Own revenues amounted to more than 120 billion rubles. Economic growth is also confirmed by energy consumption. For the first time since Soviet times, the region reached a maximum 1.7 gigawatts as of December 22, 2023.
Investment is on the rise. The Malmyzhsky copper concentrate mining and processing facility will be launched this year; the Pacific Railway – a unique project to build tracks from the Elga coal deposit in Yakutia to the Port Elga sea coal terminal with private investment – is in progress, with 280 out of 500 kilometres of track already built. The first berth is competed and ready to handle a test bulk carrier this year. Russian Railways and their contractors are also making active progress on the second stage of the Eastern Operating Domain project, which is very important for the region's economy.
Mikhail Degtyarev also spoke about support for small businesses, housing construction, including rental housing, and the region's involvement in various education-related projects.