The state of reindeer husbandry in the regions inhabited by small indigenous peoples of the North-East
On March 17, 2025, a meeting of the Board of the Association "Reindeer Herders of the World" was held in Yakutsk, the event was held under the auspices of the IV Congress of Reindeer Herders of Yakutia.
Sergey Mestnikov, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), opened the meeting with a welcoming speech. It is known that reindeer herders from 17 districts of the republic came to the congress, in total, more than 200 people came to take part, among them participants from Mongolia and China. The program promises to be rich: round tables, contests, sports, exhibitions and a concert.
The meeting was chaired by the President of the Board of the Association "Reindeer Herders of the World" Haryuchi Sergey Nikolaevich. He expressed the hope that the congress would inspire new achievements and advances in the development of reindeer husbandry in the regions of the participants.
The first report was presented by the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Policy of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) Nikolayev Prokopy Romanovich on the current state of reindeer husbandry in Yakutia. According to the data of 2024, 1019 people and 185 nomadic families are engaged in reindeer husbandry in Yakutia. The number of deer in 2024 amounted to 162.6 thousand heads. The unique geography of Yakutia includes tundra, forest-tundra, mountain-taiga, taiga zone of introduction of reindeer husbandry. Nikolaev Prokopy noted that by 2035, the government of the republic has set a goal to double the production of local agricultural products in the Arctic zone of Yakutia, 134 million rubles were allocated for the development of northern domestic reindeer husbandry in 2025, and from 2020 to 2024 it cost 5 billion rubles to support northern domestic reindeer husbandry. It became known from the report that over the years: 25 units of route cabins; 62 units of mobile homes; 38 units of high-terrain vehicles; 46 units of quadrocopters; 39 units of alternative energy sources have been purchased; 3,540 heads of over-repaired young animals; 2 sets of modular slaughterhouses; 33 corral units and 24 km of fences were built. According to the republican program "Young Reindeer Breeder" for 2020-2024, 65 reindeer herders under the age of 35 with at least 5 years of experience in reindeer husbandry are developing traditional activities. 79 million rubles were allocated for the construction of housing for young reindeer herders. The deputy also noted that the amount of social payments to young reindeer herders from 2024 will amount to 2 million rubles. Based on the results of the analysis, the main problems hindering the development of reindeer husbandry were identified: climate change, depletion of pastures, low profitability, insufficient provision of the material and technical base, personnel shortage, intensive industrial development of land, an increase in the number of predators. It is expected that for the development of reindeer husbandry in the republic until 2035 Support will be provided to the traditional way of life of reindeer herders and representatives of the northern indigenous peoples, commodity production, digitalization of processes for reindeer husbandry, and improvement of the processing of products from reindeer husbandry activities.
Anatoly Tyneru and Oleg Yatynto, members of the Board of the Association "Reindeer Herders of the World", spoke from the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Chukotka has 109 thousand head of deer for 2025, reindeer husbandry is developed in the district in the taiga and mountain taiga zone. In the Republic of Tyva, reindeer husbandry is widespread in the taiga zone, as noted by Svetlana Demkina, president of the Association of Communities of the Indigenous peoples of Siberia, Tuvinians-Todzhins "Tos Chadyr" ("Birch Bark Chum"). 30 families with about 1,756 deer are involved in deer breeding. According to Svetlana Demkina, in the XX century, reindeer husbandry was well developed in the republic and the population reached up to 25 thousand. Nevertheless, the reindeer herders' festival is held every two years, subsidies are allocated, where 3 thousand rubles are allocated for one deer head, reindeer herders are given overalls, food, tents and other materials. There was also a program to support reindeer herders, during which they received satellite phones, tents, snowmobiles, etc. At the moment, the problem of the lack of a special program to support reindeer herders is acute in Tyva. At the same time, there is a shortage of young reindeer herders, an increase in the number of predators, and the absence of a federal law regulating reindeer husbandry. Svetlana Demkina suggested increasing subsidies for deer heads to at least 15,000 rubles, developing a comprehensive program to support reindeer herders, improving living conditions for farming, and developing ethno-tourism. According to her, deer are the basis of life of the indigenous people. Ekaterina Sinkevich, a member of the Board of the Association "Reindeer Breeders of the World", spoke from the Magadan region. Reindeer husbandry is practiced in the Evenki municipal district of Magadan, unfortunately, the condition of which is at a low level. In her speech, it was said that the governor of the Magadan region supports reindeer herders with payments of 8 thousand rubles a month, as well as children of reindeer herders' families in the amount of 6 thousand rubles. No one aspires to be a reindeer herder because of low wages and poor conditions, according to Ekaterina Sinkevich, a comprehensive development plan is required to restore reindeer husbandry.
The Krasnoyarskiy Krai has the most positive experience, where the number of deer in 2025 amounted to 129 thousand. From the report of Semen Yakovlevich Palchin, the meeting participants learned that a regional program for the development of domestic reindeer husbandry is awaiting release. The program includes the organization of breeding and breeding work, the creation of breeding reproductors, the creation of high-tech access to deep processing of deer products, stimulating demand in the sales market, the organization of courses on reindeer husbandry, etc. The amount of subsidies amounted to 88 million rubles as of 2024, and a total of 283 million rubles were allocated to support reindeer husbandry in the Krasnoyarskiy Krai, as well as grant support. The use of drones for farming is gaining popularity in reindeer husbandry in the Krasnoyarskiy Krai, and social payments are being accrued for the removal of a wolf. As Semen Palchin notes, the reindeer herder's salary is decent. The region has registered a decrease in the number of wild deer in the north of the region due to the fact that domestic reindeer husbandry is poorly developed in this area. At the moment, the main goal for reindeer husbandry in the Krasnoyarskiy Krai is to improve existing conditions. The situation is sad in the Kamchatkiy Krai, where the number of deer has significantly decreased, and there is a shortage of personnel. The speaker expressed the hope that the modernization of the existing routes for the movement of herds would be one of the factors for improving the state of reindeer husbandry in Kamchatka.
Tsugtsaikhan Purev, head of the Taiga Nature Society NGO, spoke from Mongolia on the state of local reindeer husbandry. 130 families are engaged in taiga reindeer husbandry in the north of the country – the Khubsugul aimag. About 320 reindeer herders are directly involved in taiga reindeer husbandry. The population numbers approximately 2,900 deer throughout Mongolia. The reindeer herder's holiday is held annually, and the reindeer herders themselves often interact with the Irkutsk region, due to their territorial proximity. As noted by Zugtsaikhan Purev, the quality of life of local reindeer herders is changing positively every year. There is an increased interest among tourists, which has a positive impact on the local economy. Another important confirmation of the development of reindeer husbandry in Mongolia is the upcoming Eighth World Congress of Reindeer Herders in 2026. A special working group has been set up to hold the congress.
Guests from China were invited to the meeting, but due to transport problems they could not attend, nevertheless they will take part in the congress. The Reindeer Herders' Congress will be held from March 17 to March 21 in Yakutsk. Residents and guests of the city will enjoy a rich program dedicated to the traditional culture of the indigenous peoples of North-East Asia.
Asya Konstantinova,
leading specialist of the UNESCO Chair of M.K. Ammosov North-Eastern Federal University (NEFU)