Both society and the state should change their attitude to entrepreneurship in Russia, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday.
“An important issue is the attitude of society and the state as a whole to entrepreneurship. In this respect, all of us must change and we should use any opportunity to convince people that an entrepreneurial initiative is a boon and entrepreneurial activity is a key source of the country’s development,” Medvedev told an industrial and innovation forum in the Urals.
“If we manage to implement these tasks, we’ll have quite a different situation [with free enterprise],” Medvedev said.
The premier also lashed out at Russia’s customs service, saying it was still blighted by corruption.
“Our customs structure, despite the fact that we have been trying to change it for already 10 years, remains extremely formalized, quite costly, quite bureaucratic and, unfortunately, very corrupt,” he said.
The situation may change for the better if Russia implements the government’s customs roadmaps, Medvedev said.