HSE University and Tatarstan Academy of Sciences Sign Cooperation Agreement at KazanForum 2026

Lilia Ovcharova, Rifkat Minnikhanov

© HSE University

HSE University and the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences (TAS) have agreed on cooperation. The agreement formalised a strategic partnership between the two leading scientific and educational institutions in the field of demographic and sociological research. The document was signed in Kazan on May 13, 2026 by Lilia Ovcharova, HSE Vice Rector and Director of the Institute for Social Policy, and Rifkat Minnikhanov, President of TAS, at the venue of the 17th International Economic Forum ‘Russia—Islamic World: KazanForum.’

The agreement provides for a wide range of joint initiatives, including mutual academic support, the exchange of empirical data on the socio-economic and family life of society, assistance in training early-career researchers, the organisation of joint seminars, conferences, and round tables, as well as the preparation of collaborative academic reports and publications. Maria Nagernyak, Deputy Vice Rector of HSE University and Head of the Centre for Well-being and Time Use Budgets at the Institute for Social Policy, coordinated the preparation and signing of the document.

‘For us, it is fundamentally important to build systematic scientific cooperation with regions that possess strong research schools and serve as growth points for social policy. Cooperation with the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences opens up new opportunities for verifying our poverty and well-being assessment models using rich regional material, as well as for jointly developing recommendations that will form the basis of real policy decisions,’ commented Lilia Ovcharova on the signing of the agreement.

Forum Presentation: From Poverty to Well-Being

On the same day, as part of the Economy thematic block of the 17th KazanForum, Lilia Ovcharova delivered a presentation entitled ‘Modern Approaches to Assessing Poverty and Well-Being in Russia and the World.’ The session was moderated by Vladimir Kutilov, General Director of AMK Theory of Darwin LLC. Other speakers included Andrey Pudov, State Secretary and Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Russian Federation, Elmira Zaripova, Minister of Labour, Employment, and Social Services of the Republic of Tatarstan, as well as heads of relevant agencies from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

In her speech, the HSE vice rector outlined the evolution of approaches to measuring poverty in Russia, noting that the country is consistently moving from monetary assessment towards a multidimensional understanding of well-being. Lilia Ovcharova recalled that, according to the presidential decrees on national development goals through to 2030 and 2036, Russia faces ambitious targets: reducing the poverty rate to below 7% by 2030 (and below 5% by 2036), while for large families the target is to reduce poverty to 12% and 8% respectively.

© HSE University

‘There are numerous international approaches to the comprehensive multidimensional assessment of well-being,’ Lilia Ovcharova noted in her speech. ‘In many countries, including China, well-being has already become one of the key indicators of national statistics. In Russia, national development goals and national projects also establish a broad framework for interpreting well-being across key areas of life. This gives us 112 opportunities for measurement and, more importantly, for managing quality of life.’

The vice rector also presented the dynamics of real incomes, pensions, and wages in Russia since 1991, emphasising that sustainable growth in household incomes and pension provision remains one of the country’s priority objectives. Particular attention in the report was devoted to demographic challenges, including trends in the total fertility rate (with the target of increasing it to 1.6 by 2030 and to 1.8 by 2036) and the need for annual growth in the birth rate of third and subsequent children.

The agreement signed with the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences will become an important instrument for deepening joint research in these areas, enabling the integration of the best global practices in well-being assessment with the regional specificities of the Republic of Tatarstan, which is one of Russia’s leaders in socio-economic development.