Анализ уровня жизни населения Кемеровской области – Кузбасса в контексте ресурсной зависимости экономики региона

Abstract

This review article introduces a comparative analysis of the standard of living in the Kemerovo region aka Kuzbass in 2005–2019. The research objective was to identify the reasons behind the decline in the living standards and the growing negative migration. Considering that Kuzbass is a coal region, the analysis was performed in the context of resource economy. It featured Russian and foreign studies on the theory of living standards and welfare, resource economy, and fair economy. The authors defined the concept of the standard of living as elements of human existence that depend on the socio-economic development of society and one's personal income. The standard of living in the Kemerovo region, which has enormous natural resources, is deteriorating from year to year, despite its increasing coal production and GRP. Most indicators appeared to be lower than Russia's average; in fact, the gap may reach 50–60 %. Poor living standards are an urgent problem for many resource regions. Regional strategies and programs seem unable to improve the situation, which requires state decisions to change the mechanisms of distribution of the gross regional product in favor of resource regions. By changing tax and budget legislation, the state should redirect financial flows from big resource companies to local problem areas.