Social policy is the basis for the development of any society. Improving the quality of citizen’s lives, the improvement of ecology and the environment, health, education and culture is a vital aspect of the work of state structures. With good reason V.V. Putin in his last message to the Federal Assembly stated, “the whole meaning of our politics is the personal improvement of people’s lives and the multiplication of human capital as the main wealth of Russia”.
Despite the lack of consumer confidence, the real situation of cases in the Russian society in 2016 leaves huge prospects for the growth. As sociological research shows, the index of consumer confidence still remains much lower than in 2014 and the real wealth of the population continues to decrease. This could be attributed to the increasing overall population and a higher proportion being significantly less wealthy.Uncovered unemployment is widespread and practices such as enforced vacations without salary resulting in a decreasing level of wages are becoming a more common practice.
However, despite of the negative situation outlined above, there are also some positive effects resulting from the crisis. In this period where we are seeing an overall reduction in living standards, Russian’s are beginning to take a more cautious approach to the planning of personal and family budget’s and with this we are seeing an increase in the overall level of financial literacy and financial product knowledge. The experts opinions vary with regards to the outlook and likewise their forecasts for 2017. However, the majority are optimistic and give hope for the recovery of the Russian economy and therefore an increase in the living standards of the population.