A meeting of delegates of the V All-Belarusian People's Congress was held at the Vitebsk City Executive Committee

The presidium included Chairman of the City Executive Committee Viktor Nikolaikin, his deputies Valentin Tsvetkov, Petr Podgursky, Dmitry Sherikov, Zinaida Koroleva, Chairman of the City Council of Deputies Vladimir Beleevich, heads of Vitebsk district administrations Nikolay Orlov, Yuri Panfilov, and Sergey Stashevsky. The event addressed issues that will soon be submitted for public discussion.

— As a delegate of the meeting and as the head of the City Executive Committee, I first and foremost take stock of the work done in the past five-year period. And I think every delegate and leader needs to do the same: summarize the results, analyze mistakes, understand what worked and what didn't, and plan further development based on this, — Viktor Nikolaikin noted during his conversation with journalists. — Vitebsk has something to be proud of. Let me give you a few figures: industrial production in the city over five years has grown by 1.4 times in terms of the physical volume index, i.e., in real terms. The second point: over the past five-year period, about 800 thousand square meters of housing have been built, not counting individual cottage construction. This is about 130 multi-story residential buildings. Almost a new microdistrict. The city is developing, growing. The population already exceeds 377 thousand, which is 20 thousand more than in 2010. There are successes in every sphere. For example, the growth of retail space during this time has been double. We have reached small microdistricts and outskirts. But there are also problems. Unfortunately, the infrastructure of new microdistricts, particularly Bilevo and Medtsentr, is currently lagging behind, with a shortage of kindergartens, schools, and clinics.

— Of course, special attention should be paid to the private sector, where people have acquired land and built housing. However, the necessary utilities have not yet been installed everywhere. These are the tasks that will need to be addressed in the coming year. The same applies to the development of medicine. I think that consultation with delegates will allow us to make certain decisions regarding the city's development. There are different approaches. We can spread ourselves thin now, taking on many projects that we won't have enough funds to complete later. Or we can concentrate our attention on the most important ones.

главном. А выбрать такие первостепенные объекты и помогут делегаты собрания.

В рамках встречи присутствующие были проинформированы о тех итогах, с которыми наш регион завершил прошедшую пятилетку — в промышленном комплексе, внешнеэкономической деятельности и других сферах. Было отмечено, что, несмотря на трудности, на многих промышленных предприятиях продолжается работа по техническому переоснащению, модернизации про­изводства. К примеру, проведены ре­конструкция подготовитель­но-прессового отделения по переработке маслосемян рапса в ОАО «Витебский маслоэкстракционный завод», крупномасштабная модернизация цеха сухих завтраков на витебском кондитерском комбинате «Витьба».

— Несмотря на то, что проблем хватает, с оптимизмом смотрю в будущее, — отметил Виктор Николайкин. — В городе сегодня есть все для жизни. В Витебске можно до­стойно зарабатывать, но для этого нужно трудиться.

Создан ряд новых промышленных предприятий, пусть небольших по численности, но в то же время значимых — это частные предприятия «Невострой» и «РуБелЭко», выпускающие строительные материалы, мясокомбинат «Славян­ский» ЗАО «Витебскагропродукт». Про­дол­жается строительство предприятия по производству торгового обору­-до­вания под маркой известного международного холдинга «Модерн-Экспо».

По отдельным предприятиям пришлось принимать решения, касающиеся их экономической несостоятельности. Это «Витебский Рас­свет», «Чаровница», «Винодельческий завод», «КИМ». Перспектив у них не было, хотя в течение ряда лет предпринимались попытки по оздоровлению.

— Несмотря на то, что проблем хватает, с оптимизмом смотрю в будущее, — отметил Виктор Павлович. — В городе сегодня есть все для жизни. В Витебске можно до­стойно зарабатывать, но для этого нужно трудиться. Приведу несколько цифр: средняя заработная плата в городе за январь — апрель текущего года составила 6 376 тысяч, в том числе за апрель — 6 585 тысяч рублей. В целом по городу за январь — апрель 2016-го темп роста номинальной начисленной среднемесячной заработной платы по сравнению с аналогичным периодом прошлого года составил 107,3 процента, реальной — 95,5 процента.

After the report, city officials listened to the attendees. Delegates raised concerns regarding the development of Vitebsk that worried them. These include rental housing, employment, new jobs, and the creation of an accessible environment. The dilapidated state of building entrances, some 30-40 years old, and courtyard sidewalks was also noted. Competent answers were provided to all questions. Regarding rental housing, Viktor Nikolaikin noted that two buildings have already been constructed, but demand remains high, so the issue of building a third next year will be raised. A difficult situation has arisen at the employment exchange. Currently, 2592 people are registered there, and there is a shortage of vacancies. However, there are ways to solve this problem, particularly by creating new jobs. Significant attention is also being paid to the city's improvement.

— We are taking a slightly different approach now. If previously, for example, we focused on pothole repair, today we are bringing road construction equipment to the courtyards. There are already dozens of such improved courtyards in Vitebsk. Their number will grow, — promised Viktor Pavlovich.

Overall, those present at the meeting understood that the priorities set by the head of state for the past five-year period, despite difficulties, have been maintained. In the coming years, efforts should be made to multiply them.

Maria BUDKEVICH. Photos by Oleg KLIMOVICH. "Vitbichi".