Putin called for the creation of a land reclamation program in the Kherson region

The Kherson region will become self-sufficient and will cease to be a subsidized region, Vladimir Putin expressed confidence on August 26 at a meeting with the governor of the Kherson region, Vladimir Saldo. The region spent over 130 billion rubles on socio-economic development in 2023-2024, the governor said. The largest credit organizations are already operating here, and residents have more than 230 thousand bank cards in circulation. The volume of investments in the region has reached 10 billion rubles, but investors are still wary of entering the region.

What was discussed at the meeting

The Kherson region spent about 133 billion rubles in 2023-2024 on socio-economic development, Governor Vladimir Saldo said. Another 82 billion rubles have been disbursed for these purposes since the beginning of 2025, and, according to estimates by local authorities, it is planned to reach the same figure as in the past by the end of the year. The Kherson region will cease to be a subsidized region and will become self-sufficient, Vladimir Putin expressed confidence.

The largest Russian banks, PSB, Sber and VTB, are already operating in the Kherson region. Residents already have more than 230 thousand cards in circulation. At the same time, as the governor noted, investors are still afraid to enter the region: despite the fact that there is a free economic zone in it, only 45 contracts worth 10 billion rubles have been signed. "Still, the situation is not the best from the point of view of security, of course," the president said.

Some of the risks are related to problems in agriculture. "It was under forty degrees there," Vladimir Putin reminded of the heat in the region. The yield index, according to Vladimir Baldo, has halved over the year to 19 quintals per hectare. The preliminary amount of damage due to the drought this year is estimated at more than 600 million rubles. Vladimir Putin also noted a decrease in milk production. Due to adverse weather conditions, the President instructed to create a separate land reclamation program.

Also, more than 1,000 hectares of forests have already been burned out in the Kherson region, but most of them are due to incendiary projectiles from the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the governor said. The enemy is deliberately hitting fields and forests in the region, which is causing fires.

Despite the ongoing security risks, the demand for housing is growing. 44 plots with a total area of almost 600 hectares with a potential of 5.7 million square meters have already been allocated for construction in the region. Construction began in Genichesk on the Sea of Azov and in Skadovsk on the Black Sea, he noted. There will be a discount on housing for participants of the military, military and social categories, the head of the region promised. At the same time, the authorities of the Kherson region should pay special attention to the construction and repair of related infrastructure, the president noted.

— In the first place in all opinion polls is "What worries you the most and what needs to be done first?" — they say: "Roads." Only then comes healthcare, then education, then housing and communal services, and even prices go up later. Roads are being built," the governor assured.

The region has already spent 28 billion rubles on road construction between 2023 and 2025. In particular, the repair of the highway to Kherson has begun, and it is planned to complete it in 2026.