‘We need to develop and implement the mechanism for paying the regional small businesses some compensation to partly cover their trademark and service designation registering expenses and expenses occasioned by undergoing pre-certification procedures. This is very important now that Russia is about to enter the WTO,’ says First Deputy Minister for Economic Development of Chelyabinsk Region Elena Mursina.

‘Next year, we’ll carry on developing the micro-credit schemes. In addition, there will be introduced a business ‘incubator’ that will become part of the innovational activity network in Chelyabinsk Region. We are hoping to get some female and family businesses to participate in this incubator project. The winners of our Woman Director 2006 competition will now have to take part in the contest in Moscow and show once again that we are doing a great deal of work in this direction. The traditional forum and conferences that are, among other things, devoted to announcing the results of grant application results and program achievements will also facilitate our further performance,’ Ms Mursina reports.