Taking part in the meeting were Minister for the Development of the Russian Far East and the Arctic Alexei Chekunkov, Governor of the Magadan Region Sergei Nosov, and Mayor of Magadan Larisa Polikanova. Joining via videoconference were Deputy Prime Minister – Plenipotentiary Presidential Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District Yury Trutnev, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office Maxim Oreshkin, Minister of Transport Andrei Nikitin, Minister of Construction, Housing and Utilities Irek Fayzullin, Minister of Healthcare Mikhail Murashko, Deputy Minister of Finance Pavel Kadochnikov, General Director of DOM.RF Vitaly Mutko, and Deputy Chairman – Member of the Board of the VEB.RF State Corporation Artyom Dovlatov.
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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues,
I am very pleased to be here with you again in Magadan. The city is changing, becoming more modern, attractive, comfortable, it is being modernised. This is largely the result of implementing the city’s master plan. For instance, the new terminal complex of the international airport has already been launched – we spoke about this yesterday, they showed it… Or was that today?
Governor of the Magadan Region Sergei Nosov: Yesterday, Moscow time.
Vladimir Putin: The Mayak Park is being actively developed, and the territory of Nagayev Bay is being cleared, where a maritime logistics centre will be established.
Today, we will discuss the overall progress in implementing master plan objectives for Far Eastern cities. We need to examine what has been accomplished and what outstanding issues remain. Then, we will focus in greater detail on the master plan for Magadan’s development.
I would like to highlight that the new phase of large-scale work to comprehensively upgrade Far Eastern cities and create a modern environment for living, studying, working, and doing business began in 2021. At that time, the instruction was given to draw up 22 master plans for the development of cities and urban agglomerations in the region, which is home to nearly 4.5 million people – over half of the Far East’s total population.
All of these long-term, comprehensive, strategic plans have been approved and are being implemented. This year, the pace of work on implementing the master plans has significantly increased. Design documentation is being developed at full speed, construction sites are opening, and new facilities are being put into operation. To date, 165 facilities in Far Eastern cities have already been built or modernised.
I want to stress that this work is extremely important for the socioeconomic and spatial development of each city or urban agglomeration. Master plans are being drawn up with the active involvement of local residents, entrepreneurs, and public organisations, incorporating their requests and suggestions as fully as possible. We have agreed that the needs and aspirations of the people living in each locality must be taken into account.
The implementation of these plans contributes to the harmonious and balanced development of territories, enables more effective use of their investment and human potential, identifies new drivers of economic growth, and, importantly, addresses many long-standing social and infrastructure issues.
That said, master plans play a vital role in achieving the key objective – creating a modern, favourable, and comfortable environment, which is indispensable for the economic development of a city.
Naturally, all master plans must be backed with adequate resources. Let me note that several national projects have been drawn up to include dedicated sections for financing the implementation of master plan activities in Far Eastern cities. In addition, on the recommendation of the Finance Ministry, five percent of the budgets of sectoral state programmes will be allocated for this purpose.
In short, much work lies ahead, and it is already well underway. We will, of course, continue to review progress here at the Eastern Economic Forum, which will open soon.
Let us begin.
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