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On 4 October a meeting was held of the State Council, chaired by Vladimir Putin, devoted to enhancing the effectiveness of budget expenditure. Rector of the NRU HSE Yaroslav Kuzminov addressed the meeting with a speech.

On 5 September St Petersburg hosted a workshop titled Development of the institution of RIA in St Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, which was attended by representatives of the regional authorities and business associations of St Petersburg and the Leningrad Region. Director of the RIA Centre at IPAMM NRU HSE Daniil TSYGANKOV addressed the workshop, paying particular attention to the fact that the Higher School of Economics now offers a full-fledged distance learning course in RIA (72 hours), to run from 23 September until 4 November 2013, and which will issue a state-endorsed certificate upon completion.

A report has been published by experts from the Higher School of Economics (HSE) and the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) on ways to optimise budget expenditure. Among other things, experts suggest suspending the draft into military service, reducing paid leave in the public service, amalgamating ministries and liquidating federal agencies, bursting the bubble of state guarantees in the defence sector and transferring all state-owned property and revenue from its lease to public funds.

On 22 August, NRU HSE held its latest extended meeting of the working group of the Russian Government Expert Council for issues pertaining to public expenditure and public procurement. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Rosatom, RusHydro, Competitive Auction House, the Russian Association of Managers, National Association of Purchasing Institutions, The Public-Private Partnership Development Centre, the National Association of Builders, the Society of Professional Pharmaceutical Organisations, executive authorities and representatives of scientific and expert communities.

In September Vladimir PUTIN will be presented with the proposals of the Finance Ministry on how to enhance effectiveness in budget resources. RBK Daily was able to look over the draft report on this matter. It consists of 13 units and reducing treasury expenditure is proposed through a slowing in pension growth, cancelling subsidies for multiple-child families, cutting back on civil servant numbers and heightening controls over state defence procurement.
In the spring of this year, the President instructed the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Development to conduct an expert review of the effectiveness of budget expenditure and its optimisation. The task was addressed with the additional engagement of specialists from the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), HSE and other analytical centres. These specialists included Andrey ZHULIN, Vice Rector of HSE and Director of the Centre for Analysis of the Activity of Executive Authorities.  

On 15 August the Government of Krasnoyarsk Krai, under the chairmanship of the Minister for the Economy and Regional Development of the Krai Anatoly TSYKALOV, hosted a meeting, dedicated to public involvement in procurement procedures for public and municipal needs.
During the meeting Veronica DZHUZHOMA, member of the Working Group of the Expert Council under the Russian Government on improving public procurement explained that the new law was needed to move the focus of discourse between the customer and society from the negative You buy and we catch you for any infringements to the constructive We discuss together what needs to be procured, to improve quality of life.

On 7 June 2013 amendments came into effect in the federal law on government contracts (94-FZ), connected, among other things, with the procedure for unilateral termination of contracts on the initiative of the customer. Similar provisions relative to instances and consequences of the termination of a contract shall be contained in the federal law on the federal contracts system (44-FZ), which will come into effect from 1 January 2014. “The Law stipulates that the unilateral withdrawal from performance of a contract is implemented in accordance with civil legislation. That said, the Civil Code provides for the possibility of such a withdrawal by the customer not only in instances when the other party is in gross breach of the contractual conditions, but generally as well, without grounds,” declared Dmitry ILYUSHIN, expert from IPAMM NRU HSE at a meeting of the working group of the Expert Council under the Russian Government for public expenditure and procurement, held at NRU HSE on 14 August.

On Thursday 8 August 2013, the conference Open Government of Penza Region and Higher School of Economics was held at the Penza Region Government, chaired by Governor Vasily BOCHKAREV. The Higher School of Economics was represented at the economic forum by Vice Rector and Director of the Institute of Public and Municipal Management Andrei KLIMENKO and heads of the research divisions of NRU HSE: Director of the Research Centre of IPAMM Konstantin GOLOVSHCHINSKY, Director of the Institute of Economics of Energy and Utilities Viktor KOLESNIK, Deputy Director of the Institute for Public Resources Management Leonid BOGDANOV and head of the department of the Institute for Statistical Research and Economics of Knowledge Mikhail GOLAND.