Southern Dialogue Forum will determine the model of sustainable urban development

The International Municipal Investment Forum Southern Dialogue will take place in Astrakhan on October 12-20 for the second time. The Forum will be organized by the Government of Astrakhan Oblast, Administration of the Municipality "City of Astrakhan," and RANEPA.

The forum will be mainly dedicated to urbanism and urban space planning. Participants of the conference, including representatives from the Caspian countries, Southern and North Caucasus Federal Districts, and other Russian regions, will focus on discussing the most pressing issues regarding systemic development of municipalities and the environment, and best management practices.

It is no coincidence that the city of Astrakhan has been chosen as the forum platform. The project “Astrakhan is a city of sustainable development” has been successfully implemented for several years. In June 2017, the city became a platform for developing a new model of municipal management.

In this regard, special attention will be paid to improving the quality of management through introducing modern management technologies, developing human capital and disseminating best practices across the entire vertical power system of governance.

The panel session "Integrated Approach To Development of Control System In the Region" will be focused on this topic. The session will be attended by Aleksander Zhilkin, the Governor of the Astrakhan region, Oleg Semmordvinov, the Head of the administration of the municipal formation "City of Astrakhan," Dmitry Butashin, Vice-Chancellor of the Russian Academy of Science and Technology, Konstantin Abramov, General Director of the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center, and Andrei Murga, Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of the Stavropol Territory.

Aleksei Shipov, Director for the Change Management Center at the Higher School of Public Administration of RANEPA, and Partner of Alliance Consulting, will participate in the forum as a moderator of the panel session.

"I would like the discussion to be intense and constructive. There is a common understanding that reforming the state system and municipal governance is a key element of the country's development. Astrakhan has become a pilot platform for improving and putting new practices into practice. Therefore, we can immediately focus on specific experience of this municipality," Aleksei Shipov says.

Eventful program will be a main feature of the forthcoming Southern Dialogue Forum. The forum starts with a public art festival Chulim that starts in the Astrakhan Oblast for the first time. Its main goal is the artistic rethinking of the city’s historical heritage, drawing attention to its outstanding features and problems.