Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the ACIG Group of Companies Viktor Tolmachev makes a speech at the Summer Campus 2013 opening ceremony

On July 18 the opening ceremony of the Presidential Academy Summer Campus 2013 took place. 300 young leaders from 27 regions gathered in the Hall n.a. Yegor Gaidar.

As one of the initiatives aimed at sustainable development of regions and companies, ACIG Group of Companies, in partnership with the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, implements a series of large-scale social projects and acts as an organizer of the Summer Campus of the Presidential Academy.

The ceremony started with the welcome addresses by the Members of the Summer Campus Supervisory Board – Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Academic Advisor of the Campus Sergei Naryshkin, President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, Rector of the Russian Presidential Academy Vladimir Mau, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the ACIG Group of Companies Viktor Tolmachev and Zoran Vuchinich, President of Russia, Ukraine & Belarus Business Unit of the Coca-Cola Company.

"I would like the Forum to give birth to numerous interesting projects which could later be implemented", Vladimir Mau noted. Rector of the RANEPA also thanked the co-organizers of the Summer Campus: "This cooperation means a lot to us. This is not the first year that we hold joint events and thank our partners for their support." Rustam Minnikhanov emphasized the importance of cooperation in the field of educational initiatives. "We are interested in joint projects facilitating sustainable development and implemented by our region and the Academy. I believe these efforts should be made in all regions as high school is an essential part of our country’s future. The education and values we give to the younger generation will influence how the key administration tasks will be solved", he said. "One day you are going to take our place and invest in others", Zoran Vuchinich noted.

"The key secret of success is that you already are who you want to be", Viktor Tolmachev told the students. He also pointed to the important role team spirit and involvement in the project implementation play. "Be afraid of losing your time, giving way to doubts or questioning your capacity. Believe in yourself, your star and your goal – and you are sure to achieve success", was his wish to the participants.

Following the welcome addresses, the speakers talked to the students for a while. The Members of the Supervisory Board of the Summer Campus answered the questions concerning modernization of social sphere and governance, recent Universiade 2013, stories of the experts’ career success, restructuring of the energy sector and development of health care system in the Republic of Tatarstan. Besides, the students were especially interested in internships at the companies-co-organizers of the Summer Campus.

Commenting the question about internships, Viktor Tolmachev noted: "Obviously there are basic requirements to education, but what is more important is that a person should be willing to achieve the goal he or she has set. Qualification and operational efficiency are a matter of time. However, you can implant efficiency neither at work, nor in high school. If you have these qualities, if you are ready to move mountains, this is the energy we would like to see in our Company’s employees."

The opening of the Summer Campus finished with a flag-raising ceremony.

Official website of the Summer Campus: www.campus4youth.ru