Development of Local Agricultural Production as a Basis for Regional Food Security (Exemplified by the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia))

The article is aimed at the analysis of the issues of food supply for one of the regions with difficult natural and climatic conditions, i.e. the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The scientific problem addressed by the article deals with the identification of factors that impede the growth of food self-sufficiency in the region, and therefore interfere with food independence of the entire country. Studies show that the region’s self-sufficiency in food depends on the general state of the country’s national economy and its agro-industrial complex. At the same time, the self-sufficiency of the region in food products and raw materials for food production must also be considered from the standpoint of the state of rural areas. As in most regions, the current state of the rural agglomerations of Yakutia is characterized by such trends as the discrepancy between social and engineering infrastructure and, accordingly, decrease in the number of economically active rural population especially young people due to their outflow from villages. The reasons for the decline in agricultural production in agriculture and the agro-industrial complex as a whole are the structural deformation of the agricultural sector of the economy, when the main producers are small enterprises and households, low rates of technological renewal and modernization. Agricultural development is also hampered by such reasons as low wages, lack of skilled labor and government strategic planning. To increase the level of food self-sufficiency in the region, it is necessary to solve simultaneously the dual task of both agriculture and rural areas to increase the attractiveness of the rural way of life, to deal with the issue of technical and technological lag in agriculture and attract highly qualified personnel, and stabilize the financial condition of agricultural enterprises. The article suggests measures to solve these problems.