Ilsur Metshin to the participants of the forum “Good Kazan”: “I am proud to live among such people”

(KZN.RU, November 30, Ksenia Shvetsova). Today, in the framework of the III All-Russian Forum “Good Kazan”, a discussion was held on the topic “Why should the authorities invest in the development of charity?”. Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, Sergey Novikov, the head of the Presidential Office for Public Projects, Anna Kuznetsova, the Commissioner for Children's Rights, the Damir Fattakhov, the minister of Youth Affairs of the RT, as well as heads of non-profit organizations and charitable foundations from more than 30 regions took part in it.

2018 was declared the year of volunteers in Russia, recalled Sergey Novikov. This, in turn, affected the work of non-profit organizations and charitable foundations. In particular, funding for non-profit organizations through presidential grants has significantly increased. In total, 6786 projects totaling 14.5 billion rubles were supported for the years 2017-2018. “Non-profit organizations of Tatarstan took a leading position in the distribution of presidential grants. This year, Kazan non-profit organizations have come out on a sustainable third place after St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg”, S. Novikov reminded and added that last year 89 Kazan non-profit organizations became grantees for 139 million rubles, in 2018 – 118 non-profit organizations for 174 million rubles.

There is a very high level of co-financing of charitable projects at the expense of the organizations, authorities and private companies in Kazan and it is of great importance. “If business and local authorities do not support non-profit organizations, then it turns out that nobody needs their projects, except the President. I am glad that you have a different situation. Now we have passed a law through the State Duma that allows giving a business to reduce the taxable base while participating in public projects”, said the head of the Presidential Administration for Public Projects. He also noted that many important initiatives are being implemented in Kazan, which can be broadcast throughout the country. Thus, as an example, S. Novikov cited the Diary of Good Deeds as an example, which he had previously been presented at the exhibition.

“This is obviously a potential for wide functional use. It would seem such a simple motivation of first-graders to do good deeds, but this can change society. In the eyes of parents, their own child changes their outlook, understanding what is good and what is bad. Although the cost of this project is not expensive at all”, said the speaker. He added that the children's hospice created by Vladimir Vavilov is also an excellent practice. We know that there are many people who want to invest in charity projects, but are not sure how to do it right”.

In addition, S. Novikov noted that matching was successfully carried out in Kazan to create the register required for bone marrow transplants.

Answering the question of the discussion platform, S. Novikov said that it is important for the authorities to assist non-profit organizations in the first place for economic development. “Another goal is a change in the atmosphere in society when good deeds are welcomed in the country when the entire state machine is directed towards this, then the entire internal political atmosphere changes towards a positive one”.

Over the past 3 years, the number of public organizations has decreased by 5.2%, the number of charitable funds has decreased by 9%, but the number of volunteers has increased by 20%. “I myself was a volunteer for a long time, then I created a foundation, then I developed it. I tried to come up with system solutions, and I felt all the difficulties that public organizations face”, said Anna Kuznetsova. Among the main problems, she singled out the personnel shortage, the loss of the staff number due to the impossibility of constant funding of non-profit organizations. At the same time, the speaker noted, today new resources and other requests to public organizations appear. They should be sensitive to social changes, the tasks that exist in society today, and to respond to them professionally.

But the most important problem is the question of the constancy of funding. Presidential grants helped largely resolve this issue. According to A. Kuznetsova, this is a wonderful tool for supporting non-profit organizations.

New approaches and ideas of activists who are members of non-profit organizations are needed to solve the set tasks, believes A. Kuznetsova. “Your work creates new state programs. A small or large social project can become a systematic state one, get into the state program, as it happened to palliative care. It was just a project created by a group of dedicated people, and now it has become a fast-growing, independent industry”, said the speaker. She recalled that in order for all organizations to have the opportunity to speak, a Public Council was created in Russia. It includes 120 public organizations, there are special groups that deal with various types of assistance.

“We created a special platform in order to better hear the proposals that non-profit organizations have today, called it the “Office Project”, said A. Kuznetsova. She explained that the site considered proposals that could become legislative initiatives and ideas of the federal level.

Thanks to public organizations, innovations are implemented in the direction of children's policy. Last year, the Childhood Vector project was created with more than 300 applications, each of which offered a new approach or tool for improving children's and youth policy. “We have seen many good, useful, and necessary projects that can help a particular child or a family. These thoughts and innovations are born in your territory, in your daily work”, said A. Kuznetsova. She urged the heads of foundations and organizations to offer their ideas and participate in the discussion of initiatives at the federal level.

“It is important that non-profit organizations do not replace the state, but the state should not rest. We must go hand in hand, supporting each other”, the speaker concluded.

Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, said in his speech that the forum “Good Kazan”, brings together active and responsive people from across the country for the third time. The first time, it was held so that foundations and organizations could meet and unite in a common cause. We started without any experience. I am sincerely glad that many organizations have become not just our partners, but close friends. I am grateful for the work that we do together. Today we can already say that the “Good Kazan” is succeeded”.

The Mayor said that the initiative for schoolchildren, who began to regularly hold charity fairs and raise funds to help those in need, spurred the emergence of the project “Good Kazan”. “When we visited one of these fairs, we saw many children with bright, burning eyes who want to help. Today we hold good fairs twice a year in spring and autumn. And the “Good Kazan” has become one of the 12 priorities for the development of our city”, he said. The “Good Kazan” is a platform for the birth of new projects. One of them is the festival “Good Wave”, which today has covered many large cities of Russia. The finalists of the festival arrived in the capital of Tatarstan. Today they perform on the same stage with Russian pop stars. “Talent has no limits. We are pleased that thanks to this festival, abilities are revealed, children are glowing”, the Mayor said.

The Mayor also thanked the country's leadership for supporting the development of philanthropy and the implementation of significant projects for the country. “It is especially important that this is supported at the highest level. People know that their work is important. I see how many caring people there are here and I hope that we are only at the beginning. A slogan appeared in our city: “Together, not instead!” and today we, together with our colleagues, are doing this great thing. I am proud that I live among such kind people as you”, I. Metshin concluded.