The paper studies the population group of the Russian Federation, which includes people of retirement age. The demographic indicators of this age group of citizens, as well as some economic characteristics, are analyzed. The economically active group of older people who are present in the labor market is being studied. The issues related to the financial burden on the able-bodied population of the Russian Federation are being investigated. The qualification composition of the current state of the labor market is analyzed. The analysis of the positive and negative consequences of the imbalance of different age categories of citizens in the labor market is carried out.

The article deals with the state policy of Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Yugra (KhMAO — Yugra) in the field of training highly qualified specialists. The data on the dynamics of the main indicators of vocational education in the region for the period 2022–2023 are analysed, including the growth of the number of students and the increase in the average salary of teaching staff. The results of the main educational institutions of the region, the introduction of advanced vocational training centres and educational and production clusters are noted. The resolution of the government of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug — Yugra aimed at integration of educational programmes with the needs of the labour market and improvement of the quality of educational services is also considered. The material presented in this article emphasises the need to create conditions for the realisation of the potential of trained specialists in the okrug for sustainable socio-economic development of the region.

Smart city strategies are increasingly used not only to improve urban services but also to shape intercity positioning, place reputation, and territorial attractiveness. However, the mechanisms through which digital and governance capabilities become credible and socially recognized urban brand assets remain insufficiently specified. This review develops an integrative conceptual framework linking smart city capability portfolios, stakeholder-experienced urban value, institutional urban brand identity, symbolic capital, territorial attractiveness, and durable urban competitiveness. A structured narrative review and concept-centric framework-building design synthesizes 77 substantive scientific and institutional sources; three additional methodological references support the review design. The revised framework specifies a serial but non-deterministic pathway from capability to experienced value, institutional identity and identity congruence, symbolic recognition, attraction, and resource embedding, while also allowing direct experienced-value effects. The synthesis groups the evidence into five capability domains, four forms of stakeholder-experienced value, and three symbolic-capital formation processes and assigns inclusion, co-creation, communication credibility, contextual fit, and multi-level governance to specific conversion paths. The reviewed literature suggests that technology does not create brand value automatically: smart-city capabilities are more likely to support identity and attractiveness when they generate useful, inclusive, visible, and contextually relevant experiences and when identity claims remain consistent with independently observable performance. The contribution therefore lies not in asserting a previously unknown link between smart cities and place branding but in specifying construct boundaries, conversion mechanisms, and empirically testable path-specific propositions.