Irina Kiviko: The Government of Crimea is successfully implementing the tasks of the President of Russia to stabilize the economy

The most severe international sanctions imposed against Russia did not come as a surprise to the authorities and business. The restrictions imposed by the United States, the EU, the United Kingdom and a number of other countries will certainly affect the domestic economy, but as the Head of State Vladimir Putin notes, Russia has a significant reserve. The national anti–crisis plan is being implemented, government programs have been launched to support businesses, including small and medium-sized enterprises the pillars of the Russian economy.

Sanctions are not for harm, but for good

In the Republic of Crimea, the economic unit of the Government, headed by Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Crimea – Minister of Finance of the Republic of Crimea Irina Kiviko, is working painstakingly and 24/7 on the development of support measures and their implementation.

We turned to her with questions about how things are going with the development of the economy in Crimea, what is being done by the economic block of the government, what support measures are, how Crimean exports are developing, how investors are interested in implementing their projects on the peninsula. We couldn't help but wonder what inspires a woman to work as the head of a key block of the government of the republic.

- Irina Valeryevna, how dangerous are sanctions for the country as a whole and for Crimea in particular?

- Crimea knows firsthand what sanctions are. For eight years, the inhabitants of the peninsula have already been, in fact, under personal sanctions from Western countries. As we all see, our region lives, people work, there are products in stores, investment projects are being implemented. Now the sanctions have affected the whole of Russia. They are certainly cruel and large-scale, but they are not a verdict. Moreover, they will contribute to the development of their own production in Russia.

- So, will the sanctions help the economy, and instead of treating?

- To some extent, yes. When I say that they will contribute to the development of production, I mean import substitution. Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin has repeatedly said and is saying this.
See for yourself. In Crimea, oysters, mussels and shrimps have been grown on an almost industrial scale since 2014. There are dozens of farms that grow not only shellfish, but also valuable fish. This has never happened in Crimea. These products were preferred to be imported from outside. Powerful greenhouse complexes, logistics centers have been built and are being built, orchards and vineyards are being planted, new production facilities are being launched.

- Cheese-making has also proven itself well in Crimea. How actively is this direction developing?

- Not only cheese-making, but in general the production of dairy products in the republic is now at a height. How was it before? The farmer produced milk, it is collected and exported to the mainland of Ukraine. To the processing plants. Now a powerful complex has been built in Dzhankoy. This is a modern world-class production. Everything is produced: milk, kefir, fermented baked milk, sour cream, yoghurts, butter, cottage cheese. And, of course, as you correctly noted, these are cheeses.
In Crimea, during the sanctions, they learned how to make cheese according to the standards of leading manufacturers, using exclusively Crimean materials. Elite and delicious cheeses are prepared in farms in various regions of the Crimea. Cheeses such as brie, camembert, parmesan are produced, as well as cheeses with Crimean registration: "Jur-Jur", "Foros", "Fiolent", "Ai-Todor", "Moynaki" and others.
The use of natural, environmentally friendly, healthy, high–protein raw materials – milk of Holstein cows and goat's milk in the technology of cheese preparation makes it possible to produce excellent, high-quality semi-hard cheeses, as well as special and rare cheeses.

- Do Crimean cheeses have a special taste?

- Yes, Crimean cheeses have a special taste. The fact is that the milk from which they are boiled is special and not only cow's milk. Sheep cheeses are popular, and goat cheeses are generally endowed with healing properties. It is goat cheeses that are recommended for the nutrition of people with weakened health. Goat's milk, according to experts, promotes the growth of immunity against infectious diseases.
We can say that the Crimeans have turned into gourmets and are spreading the culture of cheese consumption to the rest of Russia. In the suitcase of tourists returning from a vacation in the Crimea, there will definitely be a place not only for excellent wine, but also for no less magnificent cheese. And this has already become a sign of good taste.
So, the past eight years have become a period of sustainable development for the Russian peninsula. Key infrastructure facilities have been built: the Crimean Bridge, the Tavrida highway, the new airport terminal complex of the Simferopol International Airport, the energy bridge and new power plants – Tavricheskaya and Balaklavskaya. Today, additional business and investment opportunities are opening up in Crimea.

Business assistance on an ongoing basis

- How to support business in the conditions of sanctions?

- Business assistance in Crimea is provided on an ongoing basis by both federal and regional authorities. To solve operational issues, on the initiative of the Head of the Republic Sergey Valeryevich Aksyonov, a regional headquarters was created to increase the stability of the republic's economy in the face of sanctions.
Meetings are held on a regular basis. At the first of them, the first package of support measures proposed at the republican level to increase the stability of the economy of the Republic of Crimea in the face of external sanctions pressure was approved.
These measures are very important for business support. They were developed on the basis of proposals from relevant ministries and departments, as well as the experience of other subjects of the Russian Federation, including those who have already approved a plan of priority measures.

- Can I voice specific figures?

- For example, the possibility of increasing the amount of grants to social entrepreneurs from 500 thousand rubles to 1 million rubles is being considered, as well as the possibility of obtaining a grant to one social entrepreneur both for the implementation of a new project and for the expansion of an existing project. An increase in the share of providing guarantees by regional guarantee organizations from 70 to 100% on obligations in credit institutions for small and medium-sized businesses implementing projects in the field of import substitution.
This is a very important measure, as it will be easier to take money to purchase equipment for import substitution. In addition, funds will be allocated from the republic's budget for the capitalization of the Microfinance Fund for the provision of preferential microloans, and the restructuring of microloan agreements concluded before March 1, 2022 for a period of six months on the principal debt will also be carried out at the request of borrowers.
A moratorium is being introduced on raising rates in a regional leasing company for the accrual and collection of penalties for late payments under leasing agreements, as well as for the withdrawal of the leased item. It is possible to postpone lease payments for land plots until December 31, 2022 for investors when implementing projects in the northern part of the Crimean Peninsula.
It is planned to expand the list of system-forming enterprises, to capitalize the Crimean Regional Industrial Development Fund, which will ensure the provision of preferential loans to replenish the working capital of industrial enterprises.
Appeals have been prepared to the Government of the Russian Federation to recapitalize the main business support institutions: the Microfinance Entrepreneurship Fund of the Republic of Crimea, the Regional Leasing Company, the Crimean Guarantee Fund, as well as to increase the terms of issuance of microloans by state microfinance funds from 24 to 60 months.

- What other measures are planned?

- Based on the current situation, the regional plan will be reviewed and additions will be made to it. I would like to remind you that measures to support business at the federal level are published on the website of the Ministry of Economic Development. In Crimea, for anti-crisis support of small and medium-sized businesses, you can contact by phone: 8 800 500 38 59 or +7 978 989 00 60, at any time.
The West was confident that it was capable of dealing a crushing blow to the Russian economy, but did not take into account that our country is a self-sufficient state with powerful economic and human resources. Today, Russians are learning to live in new realities.

Invest in Crimea

- Do the sanctions affect the entry of investors into Crimea? How many projects are being implemented now and in which industries?

- In answer to your question, I will say this: we in Crimea have learned over eight years to meet investors and create all the conditions for their work. This also applies to the non-advertising of their activities. Money, as someone correctly noted, loves silence.
A specialized organization, the Crimea Development Corporation has been created to work with investors, and a regulatory framework has been developed.
The Corporation's specialists provide support to investors at all stages, helping to overcome barriers that appear on the way to the implementation of investment projects.
Assistance is provided in solving issues related to land, engineering infrastructure, construction, coordination in the republican and municipal authorities.
All these sometimes difficult issues are solved by qualified specialists of the Corporation. They demonstrate openness and are ready to assist investors absolutely at all stages.
Now, within the framework of Resolution No. 368 of the Crimean government, which regulates investment activities, 227 projects worth 210.02 billion rubles are being implemented with planned permanent jobs – 11.16 thousand.
If we talk about the priority areas in which projects are being implemented, then this is the resort and recreation complex, construction, agriculture.
Among them: the construction of recreational complexes in the western part of Crimea, the creation of an amusement park "Yalta Park" and a resort and hotel complex on the Southern coast of Crimea, which will additionally attract up to 1 million tourists to the peninsula per year. This year, the investor plans to start restoring the traditions of the imperial resort near Lake Moinaki in Yevpatoria. It is planned to build tourist and residential and recreational complexes with a developed infrastructure and a well-equipped embankment. This mud treatment resort has been known for a long time. Under Nicholas II, he received the status of an imperial.

- How are you planning to develop the steppe part of Crimea, which is not as popular as the southern coast?

- You correctly noticed that the Crimean peninsula is not only Yalta and Alushta. The uniqueness of the Crimea is precisely in its diversity. Every corner of the peninsula is unique. The peninsula is surrounded by water on three sides and is washed by the waters of two seas: the Black and the Azov. Holidays on Azov, Arabatskaya Strelka, Sudak, Feodosia, Yevpatoria on Tarkhankut have their charms.
The Head of the republic identified one of the main tasks for the government's economic block to attract investors not only to the southern part of Crimea, but to offer them promising sites in the northern, western, and eastern parts.
For example, in the north of Crimea: in Dzhankoy, Armyansk and Krasnoperekopsk, powerful industrial enterprises were traditionally located. The Development Corporation initiated the creation of the first state industrial park in the republic in Dzhankoy, on the basis of a machine-building plant once famous throughout the Soviet Union. The coast of Simferopol, Saki, Black Sea regions, and Yevpatoria is actively beginning to develop. Large-scale residential complexes, and in fact, entire cities, following the example of the Mediterranean resorts of Turkey, will be created on the vacant areas here.

- It is impossible not to ask about the Free Economic Zone (FEZ) created on the territory of the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. What achievements are there?

- The basis for the development of any region is the consistent implementation of a balanced investment policy aimed at creating a favorable business environment for the development of entrepreneurship, capital investment and project implementation.
The Free Economic Zone, which has been operating in Crimea since 2015, contributes to attracting investors. The Crimean FEZ has been established for 25 years and assumes a special regime for business and other activities, including preferential taxation and the application of the customs procedure of the free customs zone.
To date, the participants of the FEZ are implementing more than 1,370 investment projects on the territory of the Republic of Crimea. The declared minimum investment volume for the projects amounted to about 150 billion rubles. Of these, about 108 billion rubles are capital investment. The creation of over 58 thousand jobs has been announced.
For the period from 2015 to 2021, the volume of investments made in the FEZ of the Republic of Crimea exceeded 178.3 billion rubles, of which 119.9 billion rubles are capital investment. About 52 thousand jobs have been created, including in 2021 the volume of investment made amounted to more than 16.6 billion rubles, including capital investment – more than 7.6 billion rubles. More than 6.4 thousand jobs have been created.
Capital investment, despite a very difficult year for the region's economy and business, exceeded the planned volume. In terms of jobs, the situation is also quite optimistic: despite the fact that some participants had to cut jobs, the number of jobs created was equal to the planned indicator.
Yes, and what is important: 93% of the total number of FEZ participants are SMEs.

Support of Russia

- Small and medium-sized enterprises are often called the backbone of Russia. How is their development in Crimea?

- And they don't call it for nothing. I am sure that small business is a powerful framework for stable economic development of the country. These tens and hundreds of thousands of enterprises not only give jobs to people, but also bake bread, repair household appliances, produce electric cars, make cosmetics and souvenirs.
Measures to support entrepreneurs in the republic contribute to an increase in the number of SMEs. For eight years, the number of business entities – legal entities has doubled (up to 31 thousand), individual entrepreneurs – 3 times (up to 65 thousand). More than 40 thousand self-employed citizens have been registered.
The number of employees employed in the SME sector has increased 1.2 times over the past 5 years (from 138.5 to 164 thousand people). Such results have been achieved due to the established business support institutions.

- Speaking in absolute numbers, how much funds were allocated to support SMEs?

- Since 2015, the Microfinance Entrepreneurship Fund has provided almost 2.5 thousand microloans totaling 4.7 billion rubles.
The Crimean Guarantee Fund issued about a thousand guarantees for more than 5.6 billion rubles, which allowed entrepreneurs to attract credit funds over 14.9 billion rubles.
More than 100 entrepreneurs who purchased machinery and equipment worth 1.3 billion rubles used the services of the Regional Leasing Company, established in 2019.
More than 30 thousand free legal, accounting, educational and consulting services are provided annually at the site of the Crimean State Entrepreneurship Support Fund.

- Irina Valeryevna, what do you want to wish the Crimeans?

- Our world is a world of stress: very complex, dynamic, rapidly changing, unforgiving of mistakes. It is important not only to find yourself in this world, but also to gain a foothold, to survive, if you want. Say a kind word to a person, smile and wish him well – he will definitely smile back, and maybe today will pass him calmly, in a good mood. I'm sure of it.

The interview was conducted by Sergey Pavliv