Government efforts to encourage a baby boom in Russia have helped to reverse the decline in demography, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with female staff of a perinatal center in the city of Bryansk, some 350 km south of Moscow, on Mar. 8.
"In recent years, we have managed to reverse a decline in the demographic situation. No-one believed that our programs to boost birth rates would work," Putin said. Despite the fact that in 2016 indicators went down a little, he said, "the demographic trend is encouraging and it is good."
"In this respect, we advantageously differ from many other so-called highly industrialized countries, especially in Europe, where negative demographic tendencies remain in place," Putin went on to say.
"We were able to turn the tide, not least due to construction of the centers like this one where you work." After the corresponding program had been rolled out and 25 perinatal center had been built, "it became evident that the effect is colossal - not just big but enormous," he said.
"An average level of healthcare is getting higher since everything else begins to catch up to this level" after state-of-the-art centers appear, he said.
"In some regions, female mortality rates, and maternity death rates, have dropped to zero," the president said, emphasizing that "it has never been so in our country before." Meanwhile, death rates in the Bryansk region were higher than on average across Russia, he said.
"I strongly believe that the situation will definitely change for the better with opening of this perinatal center," Putin said in conclusion.
Source: TASS