The council, led by the president and co-chaired by First Deputy Prime Minister and potential presidential candidate Dmitry Medvedev, has been working on welfare projects since October. The projects include education, health, housing, and agriculture, and are designed to raise living standards in the country.
Putin told the council to ensure timely medical aid in the event of accidents, and to specify the amount of guaranteed medical maternity support as another measure to lead the country out of its demographic crisis. The UN has suggested that Russia's population of 142 million could shrink by a third by 2050.
In his state of the nation address to parliament in May, the president ordered maternity allowances to be increased and additional benefits paid for a second child.
Putin said women with small children should be given more job opportunities, including retraining courses, and their maternity benefits should be revised regularly depending on inflation. The president called for more flexible mortgage schemes to be provided to families with children.
Putin also told the council to promote a healthy lifestyle and family values on television and to set up a federal children's channel.
On agriculture, the president said a state program should be drafted for 2008-2012 to develop the sector, regulate agricultural markets and maintain the growth rate attained in 2006-07.
Putin also called for measures to encourage small forms of agriculture and farmer cooperation, and raising the employment of the rural population by involving them in other activities.
The council was also directed to work out measures to regulate meat imports.
