Russia is a very large country. But, unfortunately, the standard of living in its different regions is very different, the welfare of the regions is not at all the same. Let's find out what is the list of the richest regions of Russia.
Assessment criteria
We want to note right away that there are completely different versions of the lists of wealthy regions of the country. It all depends on the criteria by which the assessment. If it is about natural resources then this is one thing, if about the welfare of people, then this is another.
Significant natural resources do not always mean high living standards of the population. Annually, various specialists determine the richest region of Russia. Let's find out who is leading in the country.
Rating of the richest regions of Russia
As a rule, the list of leaders does not change much from year to year. Outsiders have virtually no chance, having made a sharp spurt, to get out on top. For a long time, the first five included: Moscow, St. Petersburg, the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug, Tyumen and Moscow Regions. So, Moscow is the richest region of Russia. You can’t argue with this, because Belokamennaya is the capital of a huge country. Such a list of leaders is quite expected and not a bit surprising, since all of the above regions have a special economic and social status. Someone has the status of a capital, and that means a lot, while someone has significant oil wealth.
2015 Leaders
Which region of Russia is currently the richest?
Since 2012, leaders have changed a bit. As of 2015, the first place is confidently occupied by the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. So, this is the richest region of Russia. It is followed by the Chukotka District. And Moscow is in third place.
As part of our article, we want to characterize the most interesting wealthy regions of our country, starting with the leader of the rating.
Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug
Yamal-Nenets Okrug is the richest region of Russia. He has been in first place for four years in a row. What is remarkable in this region?
The first thing I want to note is a very long winter period. However, cold and frosts are more than compensated by high salaries, significant social protection, low environmental pollution and relatively low crime levels. The fact that in 2013 Novy Urengoy and Noyabrsk occupied the leading positions in the ranking of the cities most suitable for life also testifies to a rather high level of development of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area.
The richest region of Russia began to be seriously developed in the late sixties of the last century. AT as soon as possible Here modern cities with highly developed infrastructure were rebuilt. The main reason for the prosperity of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District was gas production in the north and oil in the south of the region, and the construction of transport pipelines. All this gave a high economic level.
The development of gas and oil has given many new jobs, workers, highly qualified specialists, scientists flocked here from different parts of the country, diluting the indigenous population of these lands.
Nenets is a very interesting and peculiar people, having its own culture, customs and traditions. In the cities there are local history and historical museums that are able to tell about the life of the peoples of the North. Despite the fact that in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District there are many modern cities with all the new technologies and benefits of civilization, some tribes continue to live in the old fashioned way near megacities, leading a nomadic life, fishing and hunting, raising deer. This is such an unusual region, where two completely different parallel worlds are adjacent, one of which keeps pace with progress in the future, and the second lives in a parallel world, preserving the old way.
Features of the geographical location of the Yamal
Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug is located in the north of the West Siberian Plain and is an integral part of the Ural District. The northern shores of the region are washed by the waters of the Red Sea. On the map, the Yamal Peninsula stands out sharply, which is washed by the waters of a huge Arctic Gulf. Neighbors of the region are: Khanty-Mansiysk District, Komi Republic, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Arkhangelsk Region and Nenets District. In YaNAO there are three large rivers - the Taz, Nadym, and Ob. The landscape here is quite diverse. In the west are the Ural ridge, and in the northern part lies the tundra, which gradually passes into the forest-tundra. The population of the district is more than five hundred thousand people. The region is characterized by high fertility and low mortality.
Living conditions in the richest region
Sixty percent of the population is Russian, more than nine percent are Ukrainians, and only about six percent are Nenets. The region is characterized by constant population growth due to migrants; people come here year after year in search of a well-paid job. At the same time, those who have already earned some capital leave the region, moving south - to Tyumen, St. Petersburg or Moscow. Yamal has long been nicknamed the Russian Klondike, because people come here in search of good luck.
Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug is by no means the most criminogenic place, the region is on the 28th place in terms of crime. Although a lot of money attract criminals here. They decided to make Novy Urengoy a closed city. It is especially worth noting the high level of drug addiction and drug trafficking in the region.
As for unemployment, its level here is very low. But the salary level is one of the highest (63132 rubles). At the same time, the income level in different industries is very different, therefore it is impossible to speak clearly about the high income of absolutely the entire population. The highest patches in the field of gas and oil production, which is not surprising (up to 93 thousand rubles).
At the same time, very high housing prices are observed in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District. In the same Urengoy, the price per square meter is one hundred and three thousand rubles. To purchase at least one-room apartment here, you will have to lay out more than four million rubles, a two-room apartment will cost from five to nine million.
As for the climate of the region, it is very severe. Summer is very short, only fifty days, but sometimes the temperature rises even to 30 degrees. A dry climate makes it easier to tolerate frost. And, despite all this, the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District is the richest region of Russia in natural resources. If not for significant reserves of minerals, it would be difficult for this harsh region to achieve such a high economic level.
Chukotka District
Discussing the richest regions of Russia, I certainly want to say about the Chukotka District, which took second place. It is located in the Far East, bordered by Kamchatka, Magadan and Yakutia. The entire territory of the district is the Far North. The living conditions here are far from simple. Most of the land is located beyond the Arctic Circle (polar). This means that the climate is particularly severe. The winter period lasts up to ten months. The temperature drops to -39 degrees. It is worth remembering that permafrost reigns everywhere here.
However, with all this, Chukotka is rich in natural resources, which gives it the opportunity to develop and achieve a high economic position. The region has significant reserves of minerals such as gas, oil, tin, gold, copper, uranium, mercury, tungsten, coal. What are gold deposits worth? In marine coastal deposits, even single diamonds have been identified. It is natural wealth that makes this harsh region so attractive. We can say that it is also the richest region of Russia in terms of minerals.
Moscow
Moscow has long been a leader in the ranking of the richest regions of the country, which is very expected. White-stone has always had a special status as the capital of a huge country.The decisive role in the high standard of living and the decent income of its population is played not by natural resources, as with other leaders of the rating; here, the concentration of the entire business of the country, large industrial enterprises, high social guarantees of its residents play a role here, no other region of the country has such benefits .
Moscow is the financial and business center of Russia, hence the management of most of the country's economy. For example, more than half of all banks in Russia are concentrated in the capital. Most of the largest campaigns have headquarters in Belokamennaya, because it is here that all the most important economic and political decisions are made.
We must reckon with the fact that Moscow is in the ranking of the largest cities in the world. Well, it has long been known that this is one of the most expensive megacities. Moreover, the capital is a major global scientific center. A large number of research and scientific institutes are concentrated here, dealing with such important industries as space exploration, microelectronics, nuclear energy, and defense.
The richest and poorest regions of Russia
Speaking of the richest regions, we need to recall the poorest of them. Here, too, has its own rating. Among the poor regions of the Russian Federation, Dagestan, the Altai Territory, the Ivanovo and Smolensk Regions occupy a stable position. The leader of the gloomy list for the last two years (2014, 2015) is the Pskov region.
Such sad conclusions were made on the basis of research. The experts calculated the funds that remain with people after all obligatory payments. It is this balance that a person can spend at his discretion. It is precisely by this indicator that the Pskov region has now turned out to be the poorest region, since there is a general decline in the standard of living of the population. Her list neighbors have not gone so far from her, but are nevertheless in a slightly better position.
Instead of an afterword
What will be the indicators for the period of 2016 is not yet known. Who will become the leader in the ranking of the richest and poorest regions? Experts will publish their findings no earlier than 2017. Perhaps someone will be able to improve their position and enter a new stage in economic and social development.
