Expert: The region should not run through ministries, knocking out transfers

Assistance to the regions from the federal treasury should be made transparent, says Natalya Zubarevich, professor at Moscow State University, director of the regional program of the Independent Institute for Social Policy. “The region should know exactly what and when it will receive according to the formula criteria, and not run around 15 ministries, knocking out transfers,” she said.

Also, according to the expert, it is necessary to remove the KPIs on which the heads of the regions should report. “When governors need to report on KPIs, of which there are hundreds, their main skill is the ability to draw reports on KPIs. Competencies are defined by institutional conditions. If they are geared towards reporting, we get grandmasters in reporting, ”Zubarevich expressed her opinion.

In addition, according to the expert, it is necessary to give the regions more autonomy in the management of money. “Allocate a large subsidy for education, health care, social policy, let the region figure out what components of the system it will invest in. Instead, we provide subsidies for firewood for teachers in rural schools, for uprooting vineyards, for inseminating cattle, ”she said.

But the main thing is to stop redistributing taxes in favor of the federal budget, Zubarevich believes. “Stability, immutability, transparency, less regulation – this will already help in the development of regions. In reality, everything is moving in the opposite direction, ”she said.