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RF State Council, National Projects Council to discuss development of rural territories

MOSCOW, April 21, /ITAR-TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold Monday a joint session of the State Council and the presidential council on top priority national projects and demographic policy. The main theme of the session will be ways to ensure a sustainable development of rural territories, the Kremlin press service reported.

"Those present will discuss measures aimed at attracting long-term investments to rural areas, and boosting the demand for their production, tourist and recreational potential," the press service report said. "Special attention will be focused on measures of support to small businesses and cooperatives in rural areas as a key way to prevent outflow of rural population to cities."

Participants in the session are also expected to examine a broad spectrum of problems, on the solution of which rural territories' attractiveness to living and working directly depends. These include health organizations' services, education and social maintenance, housing conditions, availability of gas supply, the quality of motorways and public transport.

Last Friday, during a meeting with the President, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said agriculture had become one of important motive forces of the economic development of the country.

Medvedev promised that the government would continue to devote much attention to investments in agriculture. "Ours is a country which God himself destined for farming. This has been always the case, and we are bound to do our best for a further development of the countryside," the Head of the Cabinet pointed out.

The Premier said he intends to tell all this to the Members of the State Duma (lower house of parliament) on April 22 durin an annual review of the government's work.

The President agreed with the Premier's assessment.

Vladimir Putin said, "Only several years ago, it was hard to imagine that agriculture would become such a powerful instrument for the development of the entire country. However, this did happen and this, on the whole, is a ver good indicator showing that our efforts have not been in vain and that additional resources are being created in this country for overall development".