Objectives:

Women leaders of single-industry towns, small towns, and rural settlements search for new effective approaches and tools for the integrated development of municipalities.

Background:

Small towns and rural settlements are developing at a much slower pace than large cities and metropolises. In the struggle for boosting the population and attracting investors, small municipalities are losing out both for objective reasons (fewer opportunities and insufficient resources, among other things) and for subjective reasons. Municipal leaders who would like to change life for the better in the regions do not always have information about federal programmes, not enough work is being done to implement training programmes, and best practices are not being monitored on a systematic basis.

Cities and municipalities need to develop cooperation. The Discussion Club offers a platform for women leaders of single-industry towns, small towns, and rural settlements to communicate and provides an opportunity for dialogue, uniting efforts to solve problems, sharing experience, and coming up with practical proposals to ensure the integrated development of municipalities.

Promotional tools:

• Organizing and holding events as part of the discussion club ‘Women – Leaders in the Regions’ that aim to expand women’s opportunities and role in the country’s socioeconomic development
• Creating a platform to bring together opinion leaders
• Informing local women leaders about the federal agenda
• Providing opportunities for public opinion leaders to be included in the general movement as well as utilizing means of social mobility
• Collaborating with the regions to implement the discussion club’s programmes
• Getting representatives of municipalities involved in solving issues related to the development of regions and the country as a whole
• Promoting the best practices of female leadership in the regions through the media

Project partners (including planned partners):

1. The Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation
2. The relevant federal executive authorities based on the discussion club theme
3. The executive authorities of Russia’s regions
4. The Union of Russian Women national public and state organization.