Almost 130 small towns in Russia may disappear

129 small towns may disappear in Russia. 3.4 million people live in such settlements, and in ten years the population there has decreased by 314 thousand. Such data is provided in the RANEPA study (available to Izvestia).

Stop, frame: unemployment in Central Russia has dropped to a minimum of 1.4%

Why has the indicator started to decline again and what is the reason for the inequality by region?

The main reasons cited by the authors of the study are a decrease in the population, a decrease in employment and a decrease in the number of representatives of small and medium—sized businesses. Over the past ten years, their population has decreased by 314.5 thousand.

"The largest declines were experienced by northern coal, metallurgical and timber towns, as well as peripheral towns in depressed regions," the study says.

The process of "compression" of small towns can take place over the course of several generations, explained Stepan Zemtsov, head of the Development Economics Research Laboratory at the Presidential Academy.

"However, these processes are not always irreversible. If new economic incentives appear — for example, the redistribution of logistics flows, the creation of industrial or agro—industrial clusters, investment projects in the field of tourism or the revival of local production — a small town can regain its lost functions," he added.

Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:

Unpopulated area: almost 130 small towns in Russia may disappear