Marat Zyabbarov: Agritourism is not just a new business, but also a way to preserve cultural heritage, traditions, and promote the rural lifestyle.
Today, the Kazan Cooperative Institute launched the "School of Agrotruism" training project, supported by Rosselkhozbank and the National Union of Hospitality Industry. It brings together representatives of agribusiness, farmers, agricultural producers, and tourism industry experts to jointly develop the promising field of rural and agricultural tourism.
The opening ceremony was attended by Marat Zyabbarov, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Tatarstan and Minister of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan; Alsu Nabieva, Rector of the Kazan Cooperative Institute; Sergey Ivanov, Chairman of the State Tourism Committee of the Republic of Tatarstan; and Lyubov Belesku, Advisor to the Chairman of the Board of JSC Rosselkhozbank.
Welcoming the project participants, Marat Zyabbarov noted that agritourism is becoming an effective tool for developing rural areas, creating new jobs and additional sources of income for agricultural producers. It's not just a new type of business, but also a way to preserve cultural heritage, traditions, and promote the rural way of life.
Alsu Nabieva emphasized that, starting in 2022, 12 farms in the republic have won the competitive selection for the "Agritourism" grant and received support totaling approximately 100 million rubles.
"We are very interested in developing such projects in the republic. The flow of tourists is growing, and people want to take our delicacies home with them, as well as experience our way of life. So, participate in the program and let's develop tourism together," said Sergei Ivanov.
"It was no coincidence that the Republic of Tatarstan was chosen to host the 'Agritourism School.' The region is traditionally among the top five popular destinations in Russia. "I am confident that the Agritourism School will boost the further development of the tourism industry and help entrepreneurs in Tatarstan and their colleagues from neighboring regions achieve leadership positions in the development of agritourism," noted Lyubov Belesku.
The advisor to the chairman of the board of JSC Rosselkhozbank said: "People have begun to travel significantly more within our country, visiting cities and territories they hadn't visited before. Therefore, the involvement of our farming community in the development of the tourism industry is extremely important."
Lyubov Belesku also spoke about the free digital platform "Svoy Zagorod" (Your Own Country). It is the first online platform for the popularization and development of agritourism in Russia, uniting Russian farmers and travel agencies offering unique vacation options.
"In 2026, we will continue to develop the project and plan to hold the Agritourism School in the Ural and Siberian Federal Districts." "We expect to train approximately 500 more participants," said the project's author, First Vice President of the OSIG, and Director of the International Analytical Center for Sustainable Tourism Development at RUDN University, Christopher Konstantinidi.
Participants were also presented with an atlas of rural tourism projects from the Russian Ministry of Agriculture, which includes successful rural tourism projects from most regions of the Russian Federation. It can be accessed at the following link: https://mcx.gov.ru/upload/iblock/7f5/7xf3c9bz1xdsfnvshtk51iatum3ytp5x.pdf.
Over the course of three days, 500 participants from 20 regions of Russia will learn about best practices in agritourism and gain knowledge about the legal aspects of doing business, government support measures, marketing strategies, and promotional tools. Additionally, 200 in-person participants will visit the republic's successful agritourism facilities: the Tatar Ostrich Farm in the Vysokogorsky District and the Biosfera Fish fish farm in the Laishevsky District.
The "Agritourism School" training will cover topics such as agricultural land use, marketing promotion of agritourism facilities, organizing event tourism, improving service and creating a unique selling proposition, building relationships with local tour operators, and incorporating agritourism facilities into tourist routes in support of the national "Tourism and Hospitality" project.
As a reminder, since 2022, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, as part of the State Program for the Development of Agriculture and Regulation of Agricultural Products, Raw Materials, and Food Markets, has been providing state support to small agricultural producers in the form of "Agritourism" grants for the implementation of rural tourism development projects.