“In a short time we made our way to what took other countries decades”
Kind Kazan forum kicks off in the capital of Tatarstan
The 4th Kind Kazan International Forum dedicated to charity issues opened in the Kazan City Hall. This year the participation of socially-oriented non-profit organisations in implementing national projects became the leitmotiv of the forum. Directors of NPOs, charity foundations and experts from 40 Russian cities as well as representatives of France and Spain. Read in Realnoe Vremya’s report how representatives of civil society help with the implementation of national projects.
“Open-hearted people always will make time for good deeds”
The City Administration of Kazan became the key organiser of the forum, this is why head of the city Ilsur Metshin was the first to take advantage of the right to welcome the guests. He reminded that Kind Kazan project appeared three years ago.
“Day after day it shows us that open-hearted people always will make time for good deeds because a desire and elan are the most important things. I am fully convinced that the moral origin of good neighbourly relations and citizens’ generosity are no less important for city development than economic factors. It is an important part of the city’s life and a huge driver,” the mayor of Kazan is sure. “Implementing the project Kind Kazan, we go by the principle Together, not Instead. And in this respect, NPOs are key partners and an indispensable element of all the work done in charity. The social sector in Kazan demonstrates stable growth, moreover, not only quantitative but also qualitative. And I mean not only the activity of state establishments. Non-profit charity organisations became not only a noticeable but also an indispensable part of the city and our citizens’ everyday life. Today over 70 non-profit charity organisations, volunteer associations implement their projects together with Kind Kazan’s support. But we perfectly understand that the sky is the limit, and we wait for an exchange of experience with representatives of different regions with great interest. The name of the forum asks how NPOs can participate in the implementation of national projects. National projects have a clear social orientation and are aimed to improve the quality of life in our country. I am sure that civil society can effectively participate in this activity, while our task is to help them with it.”
Finishing his speech, Ilsur Metshin admitted he dreamt of becoming a mayor of the kindest city.
“Republican projects reached the federal scale”
High-ranking representatives of the federal centre became participants of the forum. Vice-Chairman of the Agency for Youth Affairs Andrey Platonov was one of them. He told the audience about supporting measures for regional NPOs that can obtain from the Agency for Youth Affairs. For instance, it is the competition Region of Good Deeds aimed to support volunteers and socially-oriented non-profit organisations.
“The name itself — national projects — implies that not only authorities but also civil society should participate in achieving claimed goals.”
Representative of the Russian Civic Chamber Yelena Topoleva-Soldunova noted that the issue of participation of NPOs in national projects was very topical.
In addition, Topoleva-Soldunova read a greeting of Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Russian Federation Maksim Topilin from the rostrum.
“The key task of public administration is to provide sustainable development of society. All national projects are aimed at it. Initiatives of non-profit organisations are in extremely high demand on the way to achieving this goal. One of the tasks of Demography national project became almost a twofold increase in the number of non-profit organisations providing social service among the total amount of all organisations with different forms of ownership by 2024. For this purpose, regions take measures to support such organisations, also by including them to the roster of suppliers and providing them with subsidies,” the minister’s message read.
First Vice Premier Leyla Fazleyeva represented the government of Tatarstan. According to her, charity issues in Kazan are personally under the auspices of the mayor and at the level of the republic personally under the auspices of the president, which talks about an established system of work. Fazleyeva also indicated NPOs’ achievements in national projects.
“We have already lived a year in the process of implementation of national projects and found points of interaction with NPOs. The Republic of Tatarstan has about 6,000, and many of them can be added to Education and Health Care national projects as prevention and educational work, moreover, here they are not only helpers but the main engine,” Fazleyeva claimed. “Tatarstan is proud of the results achieved within the projects Sport as Way of Life or Public Health, which reached the federal scale.”
From university campaign to national project
Head of the Service of Associations in the Town Hall of Paris Marie-Laurence Gravaud greeted the participants of the forum.
She said that she was very pleased to be in Kazan and be representing key areas of support for public organisations in Paris and see and learn about the initiatives taken here. Marie-Laurence Gravaud added that Paris as well as Kazan supported volunteers allowing every citizen to participate in charity. The French got used to living in the network of public organisations.
Head of Moscow-based charity foundation The Joy of Old Age Yelizaveta Oleskina told the audience about an example of successful participation of NPOs in Demography national project. Her project grew from a modest university campaign designed to support the elderly into an important part of Demography national project. In 2017, it was presented to the president of Russia and approved for being used in regions. Now The Joy of Old Age foundation cooperates with 30 Russian regions helping the elderly in different areas: from personal communication and a chat with their grandchildren to diagnostics and treatment in the country’s leading clinics.
“This didn’t exist in our country just a couple of years ago, and now, thanks to the civil initiative backed up by authorities, it is a part of our reality,” Yelizaveta said. “We carefully examined the experience of 150 countries, on its basis we created our own system of long-term care, in a short time we made our way to what took other countries decades.”
