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The President started the meeting by saying that the Jewish Autonomous Region’s gross regional product has slightly exceeded the average national growth rate in 2024, when the national GDP increased by 4.3 percent, while the region reported a 4.4 percent growth. At the same time, Vladimir Putin pointed to the need to renovate and build educational facilities, including kindergartens and schools, as a major social challenge for this territory.

In her remarks, Maria Kostyuk said that the region has been working with the Ministry of Education on this issue, while the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Utilities has been assisting it in its efforts to raise additional funding. This has already enabled the region to launch several major renovation projects and explore opportunities for building new schools.

Maria Kostyuk went on to explain that the overarching reform effort in the region started with the educational sector rather than the local economy. The regional government has introduced a new remuneration scheme and will once again offer secondary school students the opportunity to benefit from vocational training beginning September 1. A review of labour needs in manufacturing in the Jewish Autonomous Region and its neighbouring territories demonstrated that working professions account for 67 percent of employment demand. This is why the region has opted to create an educational cluster with a focus on secondary vocational education, including offering degree programmes to train personnel for railways, as well as for a gas pipeline currently under construction, an iron ore plant and a graphite production site.

Turning to agriculture, the Acting Governor said that this sector has suffered a major downturn and needs to be put back on track. There is a challenging situation with poultry production in the region after local producers switched to soy. The region is now working with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and has developed a framework for growing industrial hemp. There is also an effort to bring these products to new markets.

The Acting Governor also talked about the Valour of Khingan, an educational programme which operates as a regional extension of the Time of the Heroes presidential project and is designed to help special military operations participants get an education and find new employment. Ms Kostyuk praised the programme’s participants, noting that they formed a formidable talent pool, while also highlighting that many of them wish to work in agriculture.

Vladimir Putin raised another issue: the region does not have enough doctors. Maria Kostyuk reported on the efforts to address this matter. Almost all villages and towns there already have paramedic centres, with the remaining two scheduled to open by the end of the year. There is also a medical college which has been very popular among applicants. Moreover, the region has increased the number of rural doctors and paramedics. Specialists who had left for training in other regions are returning as well. In 2024, 45 people returned, including paramedics and doctors. The region has been purchasing real estate on the secondary market to provide paid accommodation for young doctors and started building rental properties in December 2024, following the example of other regions. The President approved these efforts.