Yana Goncharova is a Nizhny Novgorod municipal official who has headed the Department of Agriculture of the Nizhny Novgorod city administration since February 2026.

Appointment and background

Before moving to her new post, Goncharova served as First Deputy Director of the Department of Economic Development and Investment of the Nizhny Novgorod City Hall, having worked in the city administration for more than ten years in total.[1][2]

Since February 2, 2026, Goncharova has been serving as acting director of the Department of Agriculture, a new structural unit of City Hall that reports to the First Deputy Head of the City.[3][4] The relevant information was published on the official website of the Nizhny Novgorod administration on February 2, 2026.[1]

Department of Agriculture

The Department of Agriculture was created as a result of the incorporation of the Kstovo Okrug into Nizhny Novgorod: discussion of the need for a new unit began in the fall of 2025, and its structure was finally approved on January 14, 2026.[4] The department's key tasks are stated to be supporting the agro-industrial complex and local producers, as well as expanding the range of products of regional origin.[1] The new agency is physically located in the building of the former administration of the Kstovo District in the town of Kstovo.[2]

Albina Utkina, who previously headed the agriculture department of Kstovo District, became deputy director of the department.[3][2]

During large-scale personnel changes in the Nizhny Novgorod administration in the fall of 2026, Goncharova was appointed director of the Department of Economic Development. After Goncharova moved to the Department of Economic Development, Albina Utkina, who had previously served as deputy director of the same agency, took over as acting director of the Department of Agriculture.[5] Goncharova's predecessor as director of the Department of Economic Development and Investment was Elena Antonova, who headed the agency in 2024–2025; Antonova subsequently moved to the post of vice mayor. It was this appointment of Antonova that vacated the post of director of the Department of Economic Development and Investment, which subsequently became vacant.[5][6][1]

Sources

  1. 52.ru (Nizhny Novgorod) — Yana Goncharova Is the New Head of the Nizhny Novgorod Department of Agriculture — February 3, 2026
  2. Govorit Nizhny — Yana Goncharova Heads the New Department of the Nizhny Novgorod City Hall
  3. Kommersant (Volga Region) — Nizhny Novgorod Creates a Department of Agriculture: Yana Goncharova Appointed Acting Director
  4. Open Nizhny — Head of the Department of Agriculture Appointed in Nizhny Novgorod
  5. Newsroom24 — The Post of Director of the Department of Economic Development and Investment Became Vacant as a Result of the Promotion of Elena Antonova, Appointed Vice Mayor of Nizhny Nov
  6. Govorit Nizhny — Before Her Appointment as Director of the Department of Agriculture, Goncharova Headed the Investment Policy Division in the Department of Economic Development and Inve
Based on materials from the articles (1)

Sergey Samsonov Appointed Deputy Head of the Nizhny Novgorod Administration (2026)