Northern Frontier: comprehensive Arctic development plans approved
The Government has approved a large-scale program for the development of settlements located in the Arctic zone. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said at a working meeting with deputy prime ministers that this initiative is being implemented on behalf of President Vladimir Putin. Within the framework of the project, it is planned to allocate at least 5% of the total budget for the development of the regions for the implementation of relevant activities. Izvestia investigated how the development plan would contribute to economic growth and improve the investment climate in these territories.
System work
Long-term plans for the development of Arctic strongholds have been approved in nine regions, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Presidential Plenipotentiary Representative in the Far Eastern Federal District Yuri Trutnev told Izvestia. The amount of necessary financing for 516 long—term plan activities amounts to 2.9 trillion rubles, of which 60% are from non-budgetary sources.
According to him, more than 500 activities provided for in long-term plans will be implemented until 2035. Their main goal is to achieve the national benchmarks outlined in the May 2024 presidential decree.
Among the main goals are to improve the quality of the urban and natural environment with an increase of 30% by 2030 and 60% by 2036, increase investment in fixed assets by 60% by 2030, and increase the share of the tourism industry in the country's gross domestic product to 5% by 2030.
"The renovation of the housing stock, the construction of industrial, scientific, transport, educational and cultural facilities, landscaping, modernization of communal, ecological, tourist and sports infrastructure will be carried out.
Social environment
A number of events are planned, of which 22% relate to healthcare and scientific and educational activities. As part of the medical direction, it is planned to overhaul the children's polyclinic in Tiksi village and build the third building of the Iultinsky District Hospital in the Chukotka Autonomous District. In the field of education, the Arctic Star interuniversity campus in Arkhangelsk and a world-class university campus based on Murmansk Arctic University will be created.
"19% of the planned events are aimed at creating sports and cultural infrastructure. We will create a historical and cultural park "Cradle of the Russian Fleet" in Murmansk, a Cultural center in the work settlement of Seekers in the Nenets Autonomous District, and modernize the Trud stadium in Arkhangelsk," said Yuri Trutnev.
According to him, special attention is paid to the development of transport and communal infrastructure. It is planned to modernize public utilities in Kemi and Monchegorsk, build the Kolyma–Omsukchan– Omolon–Anadyr highway in Chukotka, as well as reconstruct airports in Vorkuta and Salekhard.
The list of key settlements in the Arctic zone that play a strategic role in the development of the region and logistics of the Northern Sea Route includes 19 agglomerations, Alexey Chekunkov, Minister for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic, told Izvestia. Detailed master plans for further development have been prepared for them.
"The master plans were developed taking into account the opinion of the residents. Northerners are primarily concerned about health care (57%), infrastructure (43%), culture, sports and leisure (25%). These issues have become a priority in the development of long-term comprehensive socio—economic development plans until 2035," the minister said.
The geopolitical moment
The Arctic is of great importance from the point of view of geopolitics, economics and social development, and the main goal is to improve the quality of life of the local population, Andrei Zhukovsky, senior researcher at the Institute of Regional Economics and Inter-Budgetary Relations at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, told Izvestia.
According to him, having a regional development plan makes it easier for investors to plan their activities, as it identifies priority areas, problem areas and support measures. Investments in the Arctic will become the basis for sustainable growth, create new jobs and contribute to the development of high-value industries focused on the domestic market and exports.
According to Presidential Decree No. 309 of May 7, 2024, key areas of the social sphere will be developed in the Arctic, including the formation of a logistics system for integrating the region with the North, Siberia and the Far East, the expert recalled. Transport connectivity is especially important against the background of import substitution in the aircraft industry and the appearance of new aircraft, which will strengthen inter-regional communication.
In the Arctic regions of Russia, the level of medical provision is 20% higher than the national average, but there remains a serious problem of territorial accessibility of medical centers.
— The adopted document contains good tools for solving this difficult task, which, of course, carries great social significance and related advantages, for example, increasing the investment and business attractiveness of the territory, since if we bring in a large number of highly qualified specialists, open enterprises where they could work, they will certainly need Medicine is within walking distance and there is adequate transport connectivity between the regions," the expert emphasized.
It is worth emphasizing the noticeable trends in the development of the port infrastructure of the Northern Sea Route, especially in the Republic of Sakha and the Kamchatka Territory, Andrei Zhukovsky noted. Considerable attention is being paid to the completion of the Lena Bridge in Yakutia, which began on October 17, 2024 and is scheduled for completion in 2028. This project will allow for a new way to organize multimodal logistics in the North, and residents of the Arctic zone will experience lower prices for essential goods and services.
Modern airports capable of receiving all types of aircraft, including long-haul ones, have been opened in Khabarovsk, Vladivostok, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the expert recalled. This creates new jobs and promotes the development of the Arctic zone.
— Reconstruction of airports in Norilsk and Pevek is expected in the near future, which will have a positive impact on the economy of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and Chukotka. All these projects together will help significantly improve the socio-economic development of the Arctic," Andrei Zhukovsky is confident.
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