Statebuilding and the Modernisation of Welfare Governance in Russia

ABSTRACT

This article examines challenges for effective statebuilding in relation to welfare governance in Russia. The focus is the contested role of non-state commercial actors in outsourcing reforms of welfare for older people. The findings suggest that authorities recognise the necessity of reforming the welfare system and its governance in line with international principles but face challenges for developing an effective mixed economy of care while bolstering statebuilding in the post-Soviet context. The article draws critical attention to the role of healthcare reform in statebuilding efforts and draws inferences for the public health governance and statebuilding nexus in a post-Soviet country.

KEYWORDS:

• Global health
• commercialisation of care
• welfare modernisation
• older people
• public–private partnership

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Acknowledgment

The contribution of MT draws on the results of activities of the International Laboratory for Social Integration Research sponsored by the Basic Research Program at the National Research University Higher School of Economics.

Notes

1 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 3. St Petersburg, 4 December 2019.

2 Interview with manager of commercial company, Case 3. St Petersburg, 3 June 2020.

3 Here and below currency exchange rate US dated 23 August 2023 (https://www.eurobank.com).

4 https://mintrud.gov.ru/pensions/70.

5 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 2. Moscow, 21 November 2019.

6 Interview with manager of commercial company, Case 2. Moscow, 4 November 2019.

7 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 1. St Petersburg, 1 December 2019.

8 Olga Golodets – Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation (2012–20).

9 Tatiana Golikova – Minister of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation (2007–12),

10 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 1. St Petersburg, 20 February 2020.

11 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 2. Moscow, 4 November 2019.

12 Interview 1 with head of commercial company, Case 1. St Petersburg, 1 December 2019.

13 Interview with manager of commercial company, Case 2. Moscow, 21 November 2019.

14 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 1. St. Petersburg, 1 December 2019.

15 Interview with manager of commercial company, Case 1. St. Petersburg, 1 December 2019.

16 Interview with manager of commercial company, Case 2. Moscow, 4 November 2019.

17 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 2. Moscow, 4 November 2019.

18 Interview with head of commercial company, Case 3. St. Petersburg, 4 December 2019.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Elena Bogdanova

Elena Bogdanova is research fellow at the Aleksanteri Institute of Helsinki University. She has published nearly 70 articles including in journals such as Europe–Asia Studies, International Journal of the Legal Profession, Governance, Communist and Post-Communist Studies and East European Politics. Among her research interests are sociology of ageing, research on justice and regulatory systems, Soviet society and post-socialist transformations, and qualitative research methods. She is one of the editors of Communism and Consumerism: The Soviet Alternative to the Affluent Society (Brill, 2015) and the author of Complaints to the Authorities in Russia: A Trap between Tradition and Legal Modernization (Routledge, 2021).

Mike Titterton

Mike Titterton is Professor at the International Laboratory for Social Integration Research, Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Visiting Fellow at ITMO University, St Petersburg and Visiting Scholar, Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan. He also works as Technical Assistance Expert for international organisations such as the European Union, the World Health Organization, the Council of Europe and the World Bank. He works with policymakers and providers in the health, social, education and justice sectors on alignment with international standards and best practice. His research interests include risk populations across the lifespan and improving policy responses.