Press conference of the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee Nikolai Sherstnev. What topics concerned journalists?
At the press conference, journalists from the Vitebsk region raised topics concerning various sectors of the region's economy and social sphere. Among the issues that concerned media representatives was the operation of large agricultural clusters, established last year by Decree No. 70 "On the Development of the Vitebsk Region's Agro-Industrial Complex".
"Today, small agricultural enterprises are unable to invest in their modernization due to a lack of accumulated capital. Even purchasing a tractor can consume almost the entire enterprise's budget. Therefore, merging scattered farms into one large and viable entity is the main prospect for development. When such an agricultural association manages about 100 thousand hectares and has the space for machinery to operate, we achieve corresponding results. As an example, I will cite the Chashniki district, where one machine operator plowed 5 thousand hectares, which is a quarter of the district's arable land. This is the future of the village. People should work in modern conditions, with modern machinery and quality equipment. And the result will be high wages. In the current conditions, large-scale production is a guarantee of prosperity for the Vitebsk region's agro-industrial complex; it holds the future," noted the head of the region.
Nikolai Sherstnev also emphasized the need to create a domestic raw material base for processing enterprises. This is necessary to avoid purchasing milk and meat from outside the region and incurring additional costs, including transportation. Today, in many agro-associations, the "heart" is represented by dairy and meat processing plants. They set the pace for agricultural enterprises working in conjunction with them, creating a complete production cycle from field or farm to counter. Consequently, the interaction of all links within agro-industrial associations is aimed at achieving maximum results and high profits for each enterprise.
Farmers in the region export a significant portion of their produce and earn foreign currency. To further improve the situation in this sector of the region's economy, it is necessary to implement new technologies. "As of early April this year, the number of people employed in agriculture is only about 30 thousand. In 5-6 years, about 24 thousand of them will retire. And people of pre-retirement age will remain to work in the countryside. With fewer people employed in agriculture, it is necessary to increase production volume and improve its quality. Therefore, we should focus on both attracting young people to modern agro-industrial complexes and implementing new technologies. Precision farming technologies, where wide-span machinery in the fields is guided by a satellite, can serve as an example. This allows for the full utilization of available land, fuel savings, and increased yields. Such technologies are already being used at the "MazolovoGaz" agricultural production cooperative in Vitebsk region. By the end of the five-year plan, they will be implemented throughout the region," said the head of the region.
Answering a question about investments and the directions of work to attract them to the region, Nikolai Sherstnev stated that last year the pandemic significantly affected their volume. Some projects are awaiting completion this year. "For example, equipment or raw materials did not arrive from European countries due to border closures, but the work, albeit with shifted deadlines, continues, and the implementation of projects will gradually be completed. Our region produces over 30% of investment products. To increase the volume of foreign investment, issues at the local level need to be resolved more promptly and without delay. Investors should be treated with more attention, otherwise they will leave. After all, taxes from foreign enterprises paid to the regional budget will later return to the region and be redistributed to the social sphere. Therefore, local authorities should be interested in increasing the investment potential of their districts," emphasized the chairman of the regional executive committee.
Journalists were also interested in vaccination, road repairs, the presence of government officials on social media, the development and expansion of the private sector of the economy, as well as the situation related to the negative hype around the anniversary arts festival "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk". Regarding the latter issue, Nikolai Sherstnev assured that the forum would take place and that no negative reactions or external influences would affect its holding. "This is not only a brand of Vitebsk and the region, but also the prestige of the entire country. All this hype is directed at people who have never been to the festival. It will be held within the timeframe designated by the President," the head of the region explained.
This year, the format of the traditional press conference with the head of the region was expanded, and video questions from residents of the region were added. For example, a resident of Vitebsk was interested in whether the improvement of the courtyards on Gagarin Street, where a large-scale reconstruction is currently underway, would be carried out. Even during the republican subbotnik, Nikolai Sherstnev said that the second stage on this street would involve the improvement of housing stock, including courtyards and the construction of new houses.
Another resident of the region raised a question about the development of the housing and communal services sector. "Today, I cannot say that the housing and communal services are underperforming, although there are isolated cases of negligence in their work. But the problem is that citizens themselves often cannot solve their problems, believing that someone should come and do it for them. I believe that the cleaning of territories and houses should not be the responsibility of the housing and communal services alone. Their task is to improve technologies, acquire new equipment, and establish new relationships with consumers of housing services. When the residents of houses create a mess around them with their own hands, it says something. The mess in the entrances is not created by the employees of the housing and communal services. Special organizations can be created for cleaning. If citizens cannot clean up after themselves, let them pay those who will do it for them," noted the chairman of the regional executive committee.
A resident of the agro-town of Budilovo, Beshenkovichi District, was concerned about the closure of the basic school in their settlement. Nikolai Sherstnev explained that the optimization is dictated by the economic inexpediency of maintaining a school where classes have from 2 to 5 students, and the cost per student exceeds the established norms by almost 4 times. "Now the second wave of optimization will take place. It is aimed primarily at improving the quality of educational services and achieving higher results in both Olympiad movement and entrance campaigns. I would like parents to understand and support this process," the head of the Vitebsk region outlined his position.
