Evaluation of the Development Potential of Russian Cities

determining and typifying the centres according to their development potential (i.e.,

depressed, stagnant, prosperous).

Changes in Geopolitical, Economic, Demographic and Social Situation of Russian Cities.

The far reaching economic and social transformations, which have taken place in the Russian
Federation since the beginning of the 90s, have caused fundamental changes of the functional
structure and in the basic conditions for economic development of Russian cities. With the
liquidation of the system of state planning, the privatisation of state economic facilities, the
conversion of the military production, the formation of a real estate market etc, processes
were introduced, which will contribute to shifts of meaning within the city-system of Russia.
Problems are arising which, up until now, were not characteristic for the urban-system of
Russia, such as unemployment or structural depression of entire regions and cities. This
required, in principle, a new assessment of the developmental conditions for the cities
(Brade, Perzik & Piterski 1998, 2000; Pertsik & Piterski 2000; Piterski 1997; Piterski
& Brade 1999).

At the beginning of 2000, Russia had 106,5 million urban dwellers. This means that between
1989 and 2000 the total urban population of the country did not increase. Moreover, between
1991 and 2000 the total number of urban dwellers in Russia actually went down by 3,3
million (RUSSIAN STATISTICAL YEAR-BOOK, 2000, TABLE 1)ⁱⁱ. This decline could have been
more rapid without the massive in-migration of population.

Table 1. Growth of Urban Population in Russia* (in Millions)

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