Government, businesses, and NGOs discuss social management in the regions
16 February 2018
The first day of the Russian Investment Forum in Sochi saw a panel session entitled ‘Effective social management in the regions,’ with politicians, business people and representatives of NGOs sharing a wealth of experience dealing with social issues in Russia’s regions.
Session moderator Tina Kandelaki, General Producer of the Match TV channel, kicked off the discussion by noting that regional development is a task not only for the government but also for companies that do business there, as well as for NGOs capable of drawing the attention of the public and the media to those efforts by bringing together government officials and socially responsible businesses. “Coordinated efforts yield the best results,” the session moderator said.
Vologda Region Governor Oleg Kuvshinnikov shared a positive example of a systemic approach to social management. He spoke about the ‘People’s Budget’ project: residents that propose a new initiative are required to fund 5% of it and businesses contribute another 45%, the rest coming from the Region’s budget. The second project implemented by the Region together with steelmaker Severstal is called ‘Direction Home’ and is aimed at reducing the number of families in socially hazardous situations. Thanks to the project, the number of children in orphanages has halved, Oleg Kuvshinnikov said.
President of the Deaf-blind Support Foundation So-edinenie (Con-nection), Chairman of the Board of the Donors Forum Dmitry Polikanov noted in his presentation that social projects lacked data and expert opinions. Successful development of the charity industry requires more forums, training projects and opinion polls. Other panellists also stressed the need for a one-stop-shop platform offering completed social cases successfully implemented across Russia.
Charity is an integral part of life and government officials need to understand that, continued Anna Federmesser, Head of the State-Owned Moscow Multi-Disciplinary Centre for Palliative Assistance of the Moscow Department of Healthcare. According to her, one problem involves the difficulty in communicating with government officials, who “never have the time” to understand issues. Anna Federmesser noted that Russia would not be able to deal with its elder citizens without help from business and without grants. Also, there is a poor understanding of what volunteering is and how it works.
CAF Russia Director Maria Chertok pointed out the growth of local philanthropy across Russia, where there are now more than 70 active local community funds that organize social sphere events in different formats: town hall meetings, new urban traditions, restoration of historic local arts and crafts, etc.
Representatives of charity foundations spoke about their work and the difficulties they face. Ekaterina Kruglova, Executive Director of Foundation ‘MEMORY OF GENERATIONS,’ which is led by Valentina Tereshkova, pointed out that her organization was developing according to a business model and often encountered red tape when attempting, for example, to give aid to a home for the aged. Executive Director of the ‘Spread Your Wings’ children’s social assistance charity foundation Oleg Yeroma noted that his organization relied upon government agencies for funding because it was more stable, while the political situation could also have an impact.
Representatives of big business present at the session emphasized the importance of understanding the return on investment in social projects.
“One key success factor is for a company to have and understand the need for serious social and charity work. What Roscongress is doing by hosting such sessions is very important for us and for businesses, because not all companies believe they need to run social programmes on a systemic level. Discussing these issues at such platforms helps build charity into company strategies,” Philip Morris International Inc. Director for Sustainable Development and Social Programmes Irina Zhukova said.
Session moderator Tina Kandelaki, General Producer of the Match TV channel, kicked off the discussion by noting that regional development is a task not only for the government but also for companies that do business there, as well as for NGOs capable of drawing the attention of the public and the media to those efforts by bringing together government officials and socially responsible businesses. “Coordinated efforts yield the best results,” the session moderator said.
Vologda Region Governor Oleg Kuvshinnikov shared a positive example of a systemic approach to social management. He spoke about the ‘People’s Budget’ project: residents that propose a new initiative are required to fund 5% of it and businesses contribute another 45%, the rest coming from the Region’s budget. The second project implemented by the Region together with steelmaker Severstal is called ‘Direction Home’ and is aimed at reducing the number of families in socially hazardous situations. Thanks to the project, the number of children in orphanages has halved, Oleg Kuvshinnikov said.
President of the Deaf-blind Support Foundation So-edinenie (Con-nection), Chairman of the Board of the Donors Forum Dmitry Polikanov noted in his presentation that social projects lacked data and expert opinions. Successful development of the charity industry requires more forums, training projects and opinion polls. Other panellists also stressed the need for a one-stop-shop platform offering completed social cases successfully implemented across Russia.
Charity is an integral part of life and government officials need to understand that, continued Anna Federmesser, Head of the State-Owned Moscow Multi-Disciplinary Centre for Palliative Assistance of the Moscow Department of Healthcare. According to her, one problem involves the difficulty in communicating with government officials, who “never have the time” to understand issues. Anna Federmesser noted that Russia would not be able to deal with its elder citizens without help from business and without grants. Also, there is a poor understanding of what volunteering is and how it works.
CAF Russia Director Maria Chertok pointed out the growth of local philanthropy across Russia, where there are now more than 70 active local community funds that organize social sphere events in different formats: town hall meetings, new urban traditions, restoration of historic local arts and crafts, etc.
Representatives of charity foundations spoke about their work and the difficulties they face. Ekaterina Kruglova, Executive Director of Foundation ‘MEMORY OF GENERATIONS,’ which is led by Valentina Tereshkova, pointed out that her organization was developing according to a business model and often encountered red tape when attempting, for example, to give aid to a home for the aged. Executive Director of the ‘Spread Your Wings’ children’s social assistance charity foundation Oleg Yeroma noted that his organization relied upon government agencies for funding because it was more stable, while the political situation could also have an impact.
Representatives of big business present at the session emphasized the importance of understanding the return on investment in social projects.
“One key success factor is for a company to have and understand the need for serious social and charity work. What Roscongress is doing by hosting such sessions is very important for us and for businesses, because not all companies believe they need to run social programmes on a systemic level. Discussing these issues at such platforms helps build charity into company strategies,” Philip Morris International Inc. Director for Sustainable Development and Social Programmes Irina Zhukova said.
