Making life in rural areas more attractive

The "Integrated Rural Development" program covers the period 2020 to 2025 and is designed to help addressing the main challenges facing the rural population: Access to health care, social services, education, construction of houses and better conditions for the development of infrastructure in rural areas. In addition to state, regional and local authorities, the project can also be financially supported by representatives of the business community on a voluntary basis. EkoNiva was one of the first companies to confirm its willingness to participate in the project. The Voronezh, Ryazan, Kaluga, Orenburg and Novosibirsk regions have become pioneer regions.

In the Voronezh region, construction of 67 single-family homes for the employees of the subsidiary EkoNiva Agro has already begun, and these are scheduled for completion by the end of the year. The company will pay 16% (about 50 million rubles) of the total construction costs.

Roman Wolodin, Deputy Finance Director of EkoNiva Agro: "The new houses will be given to those EkoNiva Agro employees, who need support. The only criterion for us is that the employees must have worked in the company for more than a year. The program participants will receive the keys after signing the rental contract with the municipal authorities. After five years, they will have the opportunity to buy one of the houses from the municipality for 10% of its original building value, and in ten years for 1% – on the condition, that during this time they work continuously for our company and live in rural areas".

EkoNiva Agro will also co-finance the construction of social facilities. In particular, around 10 million rubles will be provided for the cultural center in the village of Schtschutschye. And a multifunctional sports field will be built in the village of Petropavlovka (Liskinski district) to encourage the health of future generations.

In the Ryazan region, the construction of 50 single-family houses will begin this year with the participation of the EkoNiva subsidiary Oka Moloko. In addition, it is planned to build 160 more houses for the families of EkoNiva employees in the coming years with a total budget of more than one billion rubles.

Vladimir Kavin, Regional Director for the Ryazan region: "We are devoting ourselves to this project with great commitment. In addition to the residential buildings, we will co-finance the construction of a new health center with obstetrics, of new sports fields and the renovation of a school. The support of our employees is important to us, because we want their children to go to modern kindergartens and schools, to develop their sporting and cultural skills where they live, instead of driving dozens of kilometers to a larger city. Therefore, participation in the federal program is a priority of EkoNiva's general social policy".

There will also be changes in the lives of employees in the Orenburg region. Last year a new dairy cow facility was opened in the Severny district, another one is currently under construction. Therefore, especially in this district the question of modern living space near new farms is more important than ever. Although this sub-project is still in the approval phase, it is planned that another 40 modern houses will be built here.

In the Novosibirsk region, the program will address a number of social questions. For the inhabitants of the Maslyanino district, EkoNiva will purchase the necessary equipment for the local health center, co-finance the construction of a health and fitness center and renovate the outdated water supply systems.

In the Kaluga region, planning and calculation work is currently in progress for participation in the federal program, and the necessary documents still have to be approved by the government. By 2024, 230 houses are planned to be built in various districts of the region with co-financing from EkoNiva.

Stefan Dürr, President of EkoNiva: " In the first place we think of the people and want to change their lives for the better. I am very happy that we as EkoNiva are participating in this support program. It offers the opportunity to do even more for our employees and the people in rural areas, so that these villages become a really attractive place to live, enabling young people to start families here and do not leave their homes for bigger cities in search of a better life".

By Viktor Bargotin