Regional Measures of Support for Families with Three and More Children: An Overview

Abstract

The paper reviews regional pronatalist measures recently established in Russia. Although much attention is paid by researchers to pronatalist measures introduced by the Russian federal government, regional measures of this kind are neither studied in the aspect of their efficiency nor properly systematized. Most of Russia’s regions introduced special measures of support for families having children in the early 2010s on the incentive of the federal government. Most of these measures are addressed to families having three or more children. In many regions non-recurrent allowances (‘maternity capitals’) are offered to families at the birth of the third child. Besides, many regions supply families with monthly allowances after the birth of the third child and provide them with allotments of free land. Overall, at least three quarters of Russia’s regions use each of these measures. The review deals with every regional pronatalist measure separately. Regions differ in amounts of money paid as non-recurrent and monthly allowances and in conditions under which these allowances and land allotments are available to families with three or more children. These differences between regions are considered for all the period from introduction of the regional pronatalist measures in the overview. It is shown that despite the economic volatility of the 2010s, the system of regional pronatalist measures was gradually expanding in that period. Cuts of some of these measures by regions were rare. Existing studies on the relationship between regional pronatalist measures and fertility are scrutinised. It is argued that further study of these measures is needed in order to assess their efficiency.