The programme of public spaces development in Tatarstan is among the winners of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA). This is the only Russian project in the 42 years of AKAA’s history. "This is a great honour for us to be awarded together with five more projects from Bangladesh, Palestine, UAE, Senegal and Bahrain. We congratulate them from the bottoms of our hearts",said Mintimer Shaimiev, the State Counselor of the Tatarstan Republic. "Your Highness, we consider this Award as a high appreciation of our multifaceted activities that are carried out in the Republic for people" addressed Mintimer Shaimiev to His Highness. The founder of the Award said in his welcoming speech that the peculiarity of the Award was that it took into account not only architectural aspects but also how it improved quality of life of people.