Solovki, January 30, 2018
Photo: mospat.ru Following the meeting of a governmental group under the leadership of Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev on the comprehensive development of the Solovetsky Archipelago (Solovki), the government of the Russian Federation decided to create a special foundation for the preservation and development of the islands, reports the government of the Archangelsk Province.
Medvedev previously signed an order on measures to preserve and develop the archipelago in February 2016. The idea of creating a foundation for work was announced at a meeting on Solovki in August, held under the chairmanship of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill. In November it was announced that a federal nature reserve will be created on the archipelago.
The meeting was attended by the governor of the Archangelsk Province Igor Orlov. Commenting on the decision, the provincial head emphasized that the creation of the foundation will allow the formation of a single control system for the realization of the restoration of the objects of spiritual and cultural heritage and the social-economic development of Solovki.
“The territorial limits of the island and its isolation create a number of problems connected with the great number of contracts, and disunity in the plans for cargo delivery for the restoration of the monastery and the building of objects of social and engineering infrastructure for the Solovetsky settlement. The creation of a single foundation for the preservation and development of the Solovetsky Archipelago could be a comprehensive resolution to this problem. It will allow us to effectively organize the key work through the foundation, to minimize the impact of construction on objects of world heritage, and to guarantee a comfortable life for Solovki residents,” Orlov stated.
The local government head also expressed the hope that the establishment of the foundation will allow for the speeding up of the process of the formation of modern infrastructure for the settlement on the islands, including new schools, kindergartens, sewage treatment facilities, and so on, in addition to tourism infrastructure.
Russian Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky noted that the foundation will be able to receive both budgetary and non-budgetary funds for the development of Solovki, including the construction and restoration works, but the project does not fall under federal regulations.
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The Solovetsky Islans are home to one of Russia’s most important monasteries. The monastery, a world heritage site, was founded in the 15th century, and grew to become one of the richest and most prestigious religious centers in the Russian empire.
For 16 years in the 1920s and 1930s it served as a prison for political undesirables, becoming the model for the Gulag system of prison camps.
The monastery was restored to the Church in the early 1990s, and the islands have become an increasingly popular place of pilgrimage and secular tourism since the monastery was reopened. Today about 30,000 to 40,000 tourists visit the islands each year.
