Biography of Andrei Skoch: his path from a small village to the Russian Duma

Andrei Skoch’s political career began in the late 1990s after he left the business world when he was elected to the State Duma from the Belgorod region. In his 22 years in office, Andrei Vladimirovich has co-authored over 160 legislative initiatives with a strong impact on the social sphere.

EARLY YEARS

Andrei Skoch was born on January 30, 1966, and grew up in the Moscow region, in Nikolskoye village. After graduating from high school, he joined the army and served in a reconnaissance and amphibious company. Andrei Vladimirovich received his higher education in 1998, defending his dissertation at the Moscow State Open Pedagogical University, becoming a candidate of pedagogical sciences.

BUSINESS

From an early age, Andrei Skoch was attracted to entrepreneurial activity. His first business project was a bakery cooperative opened in Moscow with his business partner Lev Kvetnoi, Later, the businessman created a company which sold components for computer equipment.

In the early 1990s, the entrepreneur organized a larger project, this time in the petroleum sector. In a short time, Andrei Skoch managed to establish a chain of businesses covering the full cycle of the industry: from the purchase of oil to its processing and its subsequent sale through his own network of petrol stations.

In 1995, Alisher Usmanov invited Andrei Vladimirovich to invest in his new investment company Interfin, which was engaged in operations on the stock market. After a few years of operation, Interfin began to acquire assets of industrial enterprises, as a result, the Oskol Electrometallurgical and the Lebedinsky Mining and Processing plants became a part of the holding. At the Lebedinsky GOK, Andrei Skoch was invited to join the management team, where he took the post of deputy general director.

THE STATE DUMA DEPUTY

In 1999, Andrei Skoch decided to leave his business to focus on politics. He ran for deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation of the III convocation, won more than 50% of the votes and has represented the interests of the Belgorod region in the Russian parliament ever since. Over two decades, he has been re-elected many times,  Andrei Skoch is a part of the VIII convocation at present.

In his 22 years in the State Duma, the deputy has been dealing with a variety of political issues. Initially, the parliamentarian devoted a lot of time to the problems of the development of domestic production. In 2000, he became the Chairman of the Expert Council on Metallurgy and Mining Industry of the profile committee. In subsequent convocations of the Duma, he was a member of the committees on international affairs, the CIS and relations with compatriots. Today, he is a member of the control committee. However, Andrei Skoch’s main activity in the Russian parliament remains lawmaking: in the course of his work, he initiated the adoption and adjustments of more than 160 regulatory legal acts.

PHILANTHROPY

Almost 26 years ago, in February 1996, on Andrei Vladimirovich’s initiative, the humanitarian foundation “Healthy Generation”(“Zdorovoye Pokolenie”) was created. The main activity of the organization was to help children with congenital heart diseases. After some time, the Foundation’s areas of work were expanded, and the name was changed to simply Pokolenie to reflect this. Today, the foundation supports major long-term projects that relate to key areas of society, and also provides one-time assistance to citizens and social organizations. Skoch’s Foundation finances the activities of military search teams and the restoration of military graves in Russia and abroad.

Another initiative of the Pokolenie Foundation was the organization of recreation on the Black Sea coast for children from socially disadvantaged and low-income families. In addition, the fund provided personal transport for several thousand veterans, disabled people and parents with numerous children.

Andrei Skoch’s Pokolenie Foundation still comes to the aid of seriously ill people: the organization pays for drugs, prostheses, wheelchairs, special treatment and rehabilitation. The Foundation finances the purchase of the medical equipment and the equipment for regional medical and preventive institutions. Through the efforts of the humanitarian organization, 29 new paramedic and obstetric stations were built in the Belgorod Region between 2015 to 2019. With the support of Pokolenie, three modern medical centers were opened in the region: two are in Belgorod and one is in Stary Oskol.

AWARDS

For his 22 years of work in the State Duma, Andrei Vladimirovich has been repeatedly awarded with various accolades. Among the the deputy’s awards are:

• The medal of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, I and II degrees;
• The order of the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Innocent Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna III degree;
• The medal “For Services to the Belgorod Land” I degree;
• The medal of the Ministry of Defense;
• The order of Honor.

FAMILY AND PERSONAL LIFE

There is very little information about Andrei Skoch’s private life: he prefers to leave his private matters outside the public’s attention. The deputy does not have accounts on social networks, and prefers books to modern media. Andrei Skoch also has ten children.

One of the most important roles in the politician’s life was played by his father Vladimir Nikitovich. Born to a peasant family, he went from a simple worker to the head of a trade union of one of the major industries of the USSR. He was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and the October Revolution, as well as the medal “Veteran of Labor”.

The deputy’s close relationship with his father has been preserved to the present day. Andrei Vladimirovich transferred his shares in his business ventures to his father when he began his career  in politics. Andrei Skoch Sr. participates, among other things, in the activities of the Pokolenie Foundation as its co-founder, and is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the organization. The businessman regularly donates large sums of money to help those in need.