WYG International is currently undertaking one of a number of projects under the four–year partnership programme established in 2002 between Nizhny Novgorod Oblast and DFID. Its purpose is to provide assistance in developing and introducing the regional policyof targeted social assistance, provided to the poorest families in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, with the ultimate goal of improving the living conditions of low-income families and preparing a sustainable base for their social and economic activities.

WYG International is working closely with Oblast officials with the emphasis on targeted subsidies and services, more effective social support, lower administrative costs of social support, development of family self-support, new technologies. The current concrete objectives of restructuring the social support system are:

• Development of the legal and organisational basis of social support for families;
• Increasing the effectiveness of social support programmes
• Development and introduction of the inter-branch partnership approach to targeted social support;
• Design and implementation of new approaches to a self-support culture;
• Introduction of a social protection model based on the “one-stop shop” method;
• Development of quality standards for social services;
• Creation and delivery of a set of training and re-training programmes for social support personnel.