Translated material
"Uncooperative" Ministry
Two hundred years and the financial five-year plan
Five years ago, in September 2002, eight Russian ministries decided to celebrate their 200th anniversary. Officially, these anniversaries were timed to coincide with the release of the manifesto of Emperor Alexander I “On the Establishment of Ministries” dated September 8, 1802, when eight ministries were created in Russia: military ground forces, naval forces, foreign affairs, justice, internal affairs, finance, commerce and public education. But one must think that such a widespread celebration was connected not so much with the events of two centuries ago, but with the vertical of power that was being formed in the early 2000s and the administrative reform, which, according to the authors, should elevate the role of ministries.Be that as it may, the Ministry of Finance at that time was not in a jubilee mood at all . And if we look at the then speeches of Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin today, we will most likely understand that the head of the financial department used quotes from his famous predecessors to assert the position of the Ministry of Finance in the eternal dispute with other ministries, and even with heads of government. Whether we like it or not, a good minister of finance has always been considered one who, based on the highest state interests, was able to object to the head of state or government, who “kept” money for a rainy day and demanded reasonable applications for every state ruble. Naturally, this caused controversy, conflicts, resignations...
By the way, in the relatively short history of independent Russia, more than ten ministers of finance have changed, although such “ministerial leapfrog” did not have the best effect on work with finances. I am afraid that now not everyone will remember that the position of Minister of Finance was once held by Boris Fedorov, Yegor Gaidar, Sergei Dubinin, Vladimir Panskov, Alexander Livshits, Mikhail Zadornov... In this sense, Alexei Kudrin, who took over the post in 2000 , luckier than others. Perhaps his arguments were more convincing.
Let us remember what fundamental problems caused by the 1998 default the Ministry of Finance had to solve in those anniversary days. First of all, it was about strengthening Russia’s position in the international financial market. It was then that attempts were made to create a stabilization fund. However, at that time there was no such name; they only talked about a financial reserve not exceeding 200 billion rubles. But, oddly enough, discussions about its... division began even then. Alexei Kudrin’s proposal to use the reserve to pay off foreign debts (and 2003 was the peak of payments) encountered resistance in parliament and government; in the press one could find headlines “Russia’s economy is running on debts.”
Five years is a sufficient period to evaluate both the criticism of those years and the results of this proposal itself. The stabilization fund, which since 2008 will be divided into a national welfare fund and a reserve fund, has reached almost 5 trillion rubles, ensuring economic stability and insurance against the risks of sharp fluctuations in oil prices; the external debts of Russia (as well as the USSR) have been largely repaid. All this makes it possible to talk on equal terms with the largest states of the world and rightfully enter the so-called “Big Eight”.
In the same year, measures began to be taken to liberalize currency and achieve ruble convertibility. We abolished the mandatory exchange of foreign currency earnings into rubles by our exporters, allowed enterprises and citizens to exchange large amounts, open accounts in foreign banks, and now withdraw money to other countries to purchase property, shares, and so on. By the way, the dollar at that time was worth about 32 rubles, whereas now it is a little more than 25. And the ruble, as a result of liberalization and measures to strengthen it, has now become 20 percent more expensive.
Of course, not all financial problems have been resolved over the five-year period since 2002. The most pressing problem, which the Minister of Finance pointed out both then and now, remains unresolved: the dependence of the Russian economy on raw materials, primarily on oil and gas. But while the market situation is favorable, it is natural that the problem of forming an oil and gas budget, which the Ministry of Finance has been proposing for three years, has not become a priority for parliament and the government. Although most economists are gradually inclined to believe that the appearance of such a budget is only a matter of time.
This year has also been very difficult. The upcoming Duma elections, followed by the presidential elections, require a special, “electoral” approach to the distribution of public funds. And one can imagine the pressure the ministry and the Minister of Finance had to experience. Although, of course, there was an increase in expenditure items in the social chapters of the budget. But this was done as rationally as possible through the introduction of a three-year budget, which will help cool the appetites of lobbyists in 2009-2010, since the main budget parameters have already been agreed upon.
But this, of course, is still not enough. Considering that no reforms will take place unless they receive universal support, the Ministry of Finance this year began work to combat financial illiteracy. The corresponding program has already been prepared within the department and is being agreed upon by the government. Naturally, the goal of making everyone a broker or, at worst, a shareholder is not worth it. But it is quite possible to help people navigate new economic realities and explain the meaning of what is happening. And at the same time, warn against scams and modern analogues of MMM. A separate line in the program provides for advanced training for journalists dealing with finance and markets.