The Governor of the Kaluga Region Anatoly Artamonov resigned. Vladislav Shapsha, who headed the administration of Obninsk located in the region, was appointed interim. The corresponding decree was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“To accept the resignation of the governor of the Kaluga region, Artamonov A.D. of my own free will. To appoint Shapsha Vladislav Valerevich temporary acting governor of the Kaluga region until the appointment of a person elected governor of the Kaluga region, ”the text of the decree says.

Artamonov left the post of his own free will. The head of state also met with Shapsha, according to the Kremlin website. As the retired governor said in a conversation with RT, Shapsha showed himself at his best as mayor.

“A good guy, very capable, proved to be a good mayor of a complex city, science city. I am sure that he will succeed in this new post, ”said Artamonov.

Shapsha headed Obninsk since 2015. This is the first science city in Russia, it was in it that the world's first nuclear power plant was built, which now serves as an experimental research base and sightseeing attraction.

Vladislav Shapsha will serve as governor until the election. According to the chairman of the election commission of the Kaluga region, Viktor Kvasov, the vote will take place on September 13 this year.

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting with Vladislav Shapsha
  • kremlin.ru

“I have been working as a governor for a long time”

Anatoly Artamonov is one of the long-lived governors. He rose as the head of the Kaluga Region in November 2000 and has since been reelected repeatedly. By this indicator, only Evgeny Savchenko, who has been heading the Belgorod region since 1993, is ahead of him. At the moment, Artamonov is 67 years old.

Speaking about the reasons for his departure, he emphasized that younger people should come to the leadership.

“The reason for leaving is clear. I have long been working as a governor, a decent age. We must not miss the moment when it is better to transfer the reins of government to younger people, ”said Artamonov.

In addition to public office, he is also a member of the Supreme Council of the ruling political party United Russia. In the municipal authorities, he began working in the mid-1980s, and in 1996 he became vice-governor. In 2000, he won the election and became the head of the region.

According to the Ministry of Economic Development, the Kaluga Region is a non-resource region. However, the subject managed to lead the way in economic development.

“The new economic policy made it possible to reach the level of financial self-sufficiency, create conditions for the development of high-tech industries, create a qualitatively different infrastructure and social environment,” the Kaluga Region investment portal website says.

So, in 2018, the region ranked first in the Central Federal District (CFD) and eighth in Russia as a whole in terms of per capita industrial output. Also, the Kaluga region took first place in the country in terms of per capita output of manufacturing industries. The region has third place in the Central Federal District in terms of average monthly wages. At the end of 2017, the region took sixth place in the ranking of innovative regions of Russia.

Speaking on February 8 in the Legislative Assembly of the region, Artamonov talked about the results of work in 2019, as well as about progress for the entire time he was in the chair of the governor. So, since 2000, the volume of industrial production has grown 6.3 times, and the annual volume of investments in fixed assets - 2.8 times.

This allowed to increase the amount of taxes levied over the same period by 18 times, and budget revenues by 16 times. Since 2000, incomes of the population have grown 2.9 times, and the poverty level has decreased from 45.5% to 10.4% of the total population.

The Civil Society Development Fund has repeatedly ranked the performance of governors. Artamonov took first places in it.

The outgoing governor, Artamonov, is pleased with what he and his team have achieved in nearly two decades.

“People will give an assessment of my work. As a rule, it is given after the person leaves. You have to get used to it. In principle, I am pleased with what we managed to do, ”he concluded.