Acting Governor of the Kherson Region Volodymyr Balance.
What can residents of the region expect in 2023? What projects will be developed in the Kherson region and how is the return to civilian life going? Komsomolskaya Pravda discussed this and many other things with the acting governor of the Kherson region, Vladimir Saldo.
INTERACTION WITH CRIMEA AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR
– Vladimir Vasilyevich, the Kherson region has already built fairly close relations with Crimea. How will these ties continue next year?
– These ties will be developed in all spheres: economic, cultural, social and at the level of official interaction. And even in tourism, we hope that many residents of the Kherson region will rest in Crimea during the holiday season of 2023.
– Earlier, Sergey Aksyonov said that the Kherson agrarians received a “green light” to trade with Crimea, they were trying to let shipments of fruits and vegetables through without unnecessary bureaucratic delays. How do you rate last season? How satisfied are Kherson farmers with the trade? Do you plan to increase trade between the two regions this year?
– Last season, the Republic of Crimea became the main market for Kherson vegetable growers. Our farmers were satisfied – the Crimean market turned out to be spacious and flexible.
This year we will be able to further diversify deliveries by region: Kherson products are expected in all parts of Russia. We even hear requests from Moscow: when will Kherson watermelons be sold here? I hope that by the end of the 2023 harvest we will treat Muscovites and not only them with watermelons.
For Crimean farmers, the most important event was the fact that the long-awaited water flowed from the Kherson region through the North Crimean Canal. Now the agricultural situation on the peninsula will fundamentally improve. But on irrigated land it will be possible to restore and develop all types of moisture-loving crop production, right up to the cultivation of rice in flooded paddy fields.
– What other product groups does the Kherson region plan to “promote” on the Russian market in 2023, in addition to vegetables and fruits, which have already become a certain brand?
– Vegetables and fruits are a bright brand, but in fact the main agricultural product of the Kherson region is cereals and oilseeds. Wheat, sunflower, soybeans, rapeseed – these staples have been stored with us since last year’s harvest. We will promote them both in the domestic market and abroad.
WHAT AREAS ARE MISSING?
– It’s no secret that specialists from various regions of Russia come to the Kherson region to work in various fields. Tell us, which areas are currently experiencing the most acute staff shortages?
– Our medicine experiences significant problems: there are not enough doctors – limited specialists. This shortage is covered by doctors from other regions of Russia: surgeons, otolaryngologists, orthopedists, traumatologists, urologists and others.
Recently, first-class surgeons performed a series of operations unique to the Kherson region at the Genichesk district hospital to eliminate the consequences of injuries and wounds on improperly treated limbs. Patients who might otherwise have been disabled have improved.
WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT THE TRANSFORMATION OF ARABAT’S ARROW
– Tell us more about the Arabat Spit construction project. Is this settlement positioned primarily as a resort town? Do you know the approximate construction area? How many square meters of housing are planned to be built in the coming years?
– This city will be primarily an administrative center, but, as it were, with a tourist bias, since it will be built in a unique recreation area. Approximately it will be designed for 30,000 inhabitants, so it must be taken into account when calculating the buildable area and housing under construction. The specific indicators will be known after the approval of the project and the start of work, while it is too early to talk about it, and it does not make much sense.
ABOUT THE SPORTS LIFE AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE ROUTE DZHANKOY – ROSTOV
Photo: Alexander GLUZ
– The development of sports life is one of the main priorities of any region. How is this direction developing in the Kherson region? Maybe this year it is planned to integrate local football clubs into the Russian championships?
– It is possible that we will hold a common football championship with Crimea, as well as with other new regions. We still don’t have a soccer team at the top or at least in the second league. We will recreate the Kherson football club “Crystal”.
– Tell us, when will the design of the Dzhankoy – Rostov highway be completed and when will construction begin? Is there a rough idea when this project will be completed?
– This is a project at the federal level that unites several regions of our country: the Crimean, Kherson, Zaporozhye, Donetsk and Rostov regions. I think construction can start as soon as this year, especially since the President has instructed not to delay development of new Federation themes, despite the continuation of the NWO.
– Tell us about the most important projects that are planned to be developed in the Kherson region this year.
– We will build the city, we will repair and build roads, we will normalize and systematize people’s lives. We will strive to bring all living standards to the all-Russian level; I consider this to be my main task.
