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World Bank Holds Growth Seminar
The World Bank and the Russian Ministry of Regional Development held a joint seminar entitled “Strategies for the Economic Development of the Regions” yesterday in Moscow. The Russian government was recommended to expand the roads infrastructure to connect backward regions with advanced ones, reduce transportation costs and guarantee equal access to social services. Minister of Regional Development Dmitry Kozak liked the bank's suggestions, but “there aren't enough funds” to carry them out, although spending on road building is rising by 35 percent per year.
The World Bank's World Development Report 2009 will be fully devoted to regional development. The main conclusion of the report, which has yet to be issued, is that economic concentration is unavoidable. In Russia, half of the GDP is produced on 5 percent of the country's territory. The World Bank concludes that fighting the phenomenon through economic policy is impractical and leads to the subsidizing of ineffective and noncompetitive production. “After the level of GDP reaches $10,000 per capita, deconcentration takes place by itself. It may take a long time, but it happens unavoidably in all states,” observed World Bank expert Truman Packard.
The World Bank recommends three measures when regional develop economically unequally. The first is infrastructure development to improve integration and improve the mobility of production components, especially labor. The second is the development of social services so prevent their varying in quality and availability among regions. The third is the stimulation of business development and the investment climate.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Apr. 01, 2008
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