The image of Russia – or the Russian Federation – is divided. Freedom of expression and freedom of movement have improved considerably compared with Soviet times and parliamentary democracy is better established, but there have been some regressions in recent years.
The financial situation has improved for many people in recent years, not only for those few who acquired major assets after the collapse of communism. However, the Russian economy is principally built on the sale of raw materials.
Corruption and tougher state measures
Despite economic growth and a reduction in poverty, there has not been a move towards strengthening democracy and protecting human rights. The state has strengthened its position in the 21st century under Vladimir Putin’s leadership, but some democratic freedoms have been relinquished.
Many international institutes are expressing concern about developments within the legal system and about the deterioration of the conditions for news monitoring and free-opinion building. Human Rights Watch and Freedom House are two such institutes.
The 2009 Human Rights Watch report entitled “An Uncivil Approach to Civil Society” highlights the increasing difficulty organizations working with civil society face in Russia.
Corruption is widespread. In recent years, Russia’s position on Transparency International’s global corruption perceptions index has fallen to 147 out of 179 countries (2008). This position is closely related to the absence of investigative journalism and the weak position of the judicial system in the country.
Changes to the parliamentary system have also made it more difficult for smaller parties to attain power. And for the first time since the Soviet era, Russia now has what can be referred to as political prisoners.
Poverty and poor health
After 1991, the number of poor people in Russia grew dramatically and by 1999, the number had doubled. However, economic improvements in the first decade of the 21st century have also led to better conditions for a larger number of population groups.
Despite this, many people, particularly families with young children and pensioners, are still struggling to manage their finances. About 12 per cent of the population is regarded as poor. The gap between rich and poor in Russia is remarkably large, and increasing.
Life expectancy has fallen and serious health problems include widespread alcohol and drug abuse and a worryingly high proportion of people with HIV/Aids, mostly youths.
Many donors but poor co-ordination
Many donors supported Russia in the early 1990s to help build the country’s democracy and economy. As the needs of the population increased, many donors, including Sweden, raised their contributions to support activities in the social realm.
There have been many donors and many contribution areas. But there has been weak co-ordination across initiatives, partly because Russia has not had the interest or capacity to co-ordinate the contributions. The United States has been the largest among bilateral donors to Russia through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Many other countries and UN organizations, especially the World Bank, have also undertaken major operations. But the World Bank admits, rather self-critically, that another strategy should have been applied.
Russia’s recent strong economic development means that all donors are now reducing or completely discontinuing their co-operation. In 2005, Sweden decided to begin scaling down its co-operation and phase out all development assistance to the country by 2010. Following another decision by the Swedish government in 2007, the phasing out of support to Russia was sped up even more.
Sweden’s support to Russia has been channelled through Sida, the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Swedish Institute.
Sweden’s focus areas during the strategy period:
- Common security
- Promoting democracy
- Economic and social change
- The environment
