RT President has held a meeting of the Republican Council on charitable activities

Tatarstan President Mintimer Shaimiev held a meeting of the Republican Council on charitable activities at the Kazan Kremlin on February 9.

The meeting started unusually – with doing physical exercises. Legends of Tatarstan sport – Svetlana Demina, Irek Zinnurov, Elena Migunova and Olga Pavlova showed some health-improving exercises.

In his opening speech, Tatarstan President marked that holding the Year of Charity, the Year of Family and the Year of Sport and Healthy Lifestyle in the republic has become a good tradition and is supported by the absolute majority of people.

Tatarstan Minister of Youth Affairs, Sport and Tourism Marat Bariev made a report on measures of realizing the Tatarstan President’s decree “On conducting the Year of Sport and Healthy Lifestyle in Tatarstan”. He said that 130 sport facilities were put into operation in 2008 in the republic. The number of people going in for sports on a regular basis is increasing year-by-year. This figure as of January 1, 2009 made up 19.1 percent; by 2010 it is expected to reach 21 percent, by 2015 – 30 percent.

“The main goal of the Year of Sport is to form the need and motivation in healthy lifestyle and physical culture and sport,” Marat Bariev emphasized.

The minister informed that the republican project of morning exercises will be implemented as part of the Year of Sport. Videos with participation of well-known sportsmen will be shown on TV in order to attract more people to doing exercises.

Tatarstan Healthcare Minister Airat Farrakhov in his report indicated that preservation of the nation’s health is of particular importance on the background of business activity decline caused by the world financial crisis. One of the main indices defining the situation in healthcare is infant mortality. Its level in Tatarstan decreased by 23 percent last year and totaled 6 per thousand newborns (lowest in our history).

According to the minister, a significant constituent of healthy lifestyle is balanced nutrition. ‘Contribution’ of unhealthy nutrition to general mortality in Russia makes up 48 percent, according to the World Health Organization.

“We cannot use our motto ‘Bez buldarybyz!' (We can!) unless we are healthy. Sport is a uniting idea on a national scale. The Year of Sport has been announced, all events will be worked out and take place in due time,” Mintimer Shaimiev concluded.

Tatarstan President bestowed awards to winners of the republican contest ‘Benefactor 2008’. He said that the contest winners are an example for the whole republic.