Reform Priorities

Background

The administrative reform has been launched in 2003. President of Russia, Mr. Putin has set a clear target of limiting the government intervention with economic activity, of avoiding any overregulation, and of diminishing the powers of state authorities.

The above has resulted in a complete inventory of the functions assigned to Russian ministries and agencies. Over one third of functions and authorities assigned to various state agencies have appeared redundant or duplicating.

The above has been followed by an organizational reform involving a radical change of the Russian Government structure. Previously, the functions of state property management, of government service provision, of economic activity regulation, of policy decision making, and of supervision & monitoring were all concentrated in a single source. The above resulted in a preposterous situation when an appeal against the action of a specific government official was sometimes considered by the very same person.

Therefore, eliminating function redundancy and establishing the structures in charge of any clearly defined responsibilities has enabled to

(i) monitor the quality of government services;

(ii) specify requirements to the quality of services in terms of public interests and needs;

(iii) improve the actual performance; and (iv) support the implementation of each specific function with adequate financial and staffing resources.

Delineation of powers between federal and regional executive authorities has been completed. The above has resulted in clearly specifying the relevant scope of work, in reducing the number of state authorities by about one half, and in saving the vast amounts of budget funding.

In 2005, the Russian Government has adopted the Russian Administrative Reform Concept. Presently, basing on the Action Plan under the Concept, regulation of activity of executive authorities, establishment of a network of multi-functional service centers and transfer of government services into an electronic format have been underway.

The strategic goal of this work is to improve the life quality of Russian citizens and the efficiency of operation of government apparatus.

Top Priorities of Administrative Reform

Administrative Regulations

Government authorities have provided numerous services to Russian citizens and legal entities including issuance of a civil passport or driving license, the property registration, social assistance, etc.

Reforming has aimed at optimizing the above services provision and improving the quality of government services in general. Almost every person in Russia has faced some problems while visiting public offices, for example, a too long waiting time, unnecessary repeated visits to several officials etc. The above would mean high time losses for a person and an extra cost burden for a government office. Often, it was not possible to know what specific office you should address. All the above contributed to a high rate of corruption and red tape. Currently, an actual progress could be observed.

Those services and functions that would remain under the government competence should be provided on a much higher level. Previously, no service provision statistics was maintained, and no accent on the comfort of service provision was made. Currently, improving the quality of service provision has become a top priority for government authorities.

By the end of 2010, a complete register of government services will be finished. Each service will be covered by the detailed administrative regulations specifying all relevant procedures & responsible officials and fixing the period for processing a certain appeal. All the regulations should be of a standard type, with 100 to 150 pages devoted to a single service on the average. The language of the regulations is clear and excludes any ditto logy. Presently, over 500 administrative regulations have been developed and adopted (or are being adopted).

The practical applicability and usefulness of the above regulations have been evident. Earlier on, almost every service was regulated by dozens of legislative acts, orders and instructions. Now, a single document would be enough. The regulations package includes sample applications and a complete list of all notes, forms or certificates to be submitted by an individual to obtain any service required. All the actions on the part of state officials have been described in a simple and clear manner.

Most significant, the regulations are aimed at protecting the rights of an individual.

• First, the actions of government officials have been arranged so that any forms of red tape and corruption are excluded;
• Second, the regulations have governed the quality of service provision. Implementing the above standards would allow greatly reducing the waiting time and eliminating queues. Specific requirements in respect of one’s personal comfort have been envisaged;
• Third, a complete list of reasons for refusal & appeal procedures, and the instructions for civil servants facing a non-standard case (for instance, if an individual cannot submit any necessary documents) have been provided.

To optimize cooperation between citizens and civil servants, a “one-stop shop” system is being introduced where possible. In 2008-2010, modern multi-functional centers (MFCs) should replace numerous government and municipal offices in Russia. The MFCs provide to individuals and legal entities the whole range of standard public, government and municipal services. Every service could be provided based on a “one-stop shop” principle. Also a range of e-government services (remote document formalization options via Internet) will be expanded.

Please see our web-portal for a dedicated Administrative Regulations section featuring all the approved administrative regulations.

Multi-Functional Center

Soon, it will become possible to get any certificate, housing subsidy and social assistance and to register the purchase and sale of housing at a multi-functional government and municipal service center (MFC). An MFC will represent various government agencies and municipal offices providing their services as a “one-stop shop” and minimizing excessive contacts between citizens and civil servants.

Currently, only some pilot MFC projects have been implemented. However, by 2010, the above experience is intended to cover every Russian region. Establishment of the MFCs would greatly simplify the relevant procedures and reduce the time of individuals and businesses waiting for any standard government & municipal service provision. Establishing the general digital databases has accelerated the document formalization and the work of civil servants securing an efficient operation of several government agencies at a time. No paper work and requests by mail should be required any more to obtain any necessary information. Therefore, most notes and certificates could mostly be issued immediately.

Each MFC should include at least 20 "one-stop shops" – windows, each of them offering the complete range of services presented by an MFC. An electronic queue system is usually employed there including a preliminary registration option. Waiting rooms are equipped with special chairs and air conditioners. In line with the European standards, a special attention is paid to the comfort of disabled persons. The MFCs are located close to the bus stops and offer a parking site for visitors. By the way, an MFC can serve more than 500 thousand visitors per annum.

Under an initial phase, the MFCs should provide up to 80 government and municipal services including any social payments and other social benefits, property registration, real estate rights formalization, and formalization of a civil status (registration of one’s place of residence, issuance of any identity cards, services of a Civil Registry Office, etc.), as well as any complex services for the private business including the formalization of any permits, licenses, etc. In course of time, the range of services provided to individuals and legal entities will be extended.

For more detailed information on operation of existing MFCs, please see the dedicated Multi-Functional Center section on our web-portal.