Primary goals of regional economic policy in North Ossetia-Alania Republic

The key tasks of the regional policy for the nearest future are expressed in the Programme of the Government of North Ossetia-Alania Republic for 1999. For their implementation it is planned:

to conduct active policy in the real sector of economy, to achieve stabilisation of the industry and to achieve the increase of volumes of commercial production at large and medium companies by 4.8% (by the end of 1999 compared with 1998). To use for this purpose the measures of state control, in particular the procedure of state (republican) order;

to implement integrated measures for legalisation of the shadow capital and liquidation of criminal business;

to render state support to agriculture to essentially increase production of grain, potatoes, vegetables and meat. To form republican food fund on the basis of guaranteed advance payments for agricultural products;

to upgrade electronic industry. To move part of the companies from the sphere of defence industry and to transfer them to production of competitive civil products. The structural rearrangement of the electronic branch will be conducted on the basis of the federal target programme "Development of electronic technology in Russia".

The plans for medium term (after 2000) include the development by the Government of North Ossetia-Alania Republic of the following directions and branches of economy: * small business; * high technologies, including through conversion of defence industry companies; * transport infrastructure of transit and international importance ? the project "Southern Gates" (construction and renovation of Transcaucasian Road and Georgian Military Road and motorways, including multilateral passing points at the border).

The work on the regional programmes adopted earlier will continue. This includes the federal programme "Fuel and energy", in particular the programmes "Ossetian Oil" and "Development of electric power industry in Ossetia".

A special direction of the regional policy is the development of highland areas, preservation and rational use of their natural resources, historic, cultural and architectural heritage. The special Law On mountain territories in North Ossetia-Alania Republic was adopted in this respect on December 30, 1998.