Putin says govt needs to ensure growth of Russian agricultural exports
(c) 2010 Interfax Information Services, B.V.
NOVO-OGAREVO. June 4 (Interfax) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has called on the government to make sure conditions are in place for Russia to increase its agricultural export potential, and to continue efforts to create an effective mechanism for smoothing-out seasonal price fluctuation on agricultural products.
"We need to provide conditions for our export potential to increase, to develop domestic market infrastructure. I have grain in mind, our potential is growing, but we need to move toward opening markets for other kinds of agricultural products. It's possible," Putin said as he opened a Friday meeting dealing with issues of budget-spending planning for 2011-2013.
Putin emphasized the importance of balancing-out the development of Russian agribusiness, saying, "Serious growth in livestock farming should follow right behind increasing the production of grain." "That will significantly increase domestic demand for grain, strengthen our animal husbandry business, and allow us to satiate the market with domestic meat and milled products with high quality standards," Putin said.
Particular attention should be paid to issues involved in increasing the living standards of rural populations and the resolution of social problems, he said. Measures being taken in the first state program for agricultural development will wrap up in 2012, he said. So Russia has to "think about the priorities of our new five-year program, which we'll begin to implement in 2013," he said.
Furthermore, Russia can fully supply itself with grain and is able to export massive amounts, Putin said.
"We are fully provided with the main raw foundation of agriculture - grain. Volume is sufficient not only for meeting our own requirements, but also for large-scale export," he said.
Russia "is achieving a high-level of import-replacement in certain positions, particularly poultry meat and pork, milk and dairy products," Putin said.
In 2009 alone, the sector raised upwards of 453 billion rubles in subsidized credits, with 300 billion of that in short-term credits, more than 110 billion investment credits, and 40 billion for the support of small forms of business, he said.
This year, 107 billion rubles was allocated for the state agriculture-development program, he said. Over 300 billion rubles were allocated in 2008-2009.
"These investments and support measures are producing results. Even in the complicated crisis conditions agricultural product volume grew 12%, which was even 4.3 percentage points higher than we had planned," Putin said.
11.06.2010, 1848 просмотров.
