[citation needed] In recent decades, a minor recoverable oil reserve was revealed in the east of the region, as well as deposits of bentonite clays.

[citation needed] Kirov Oblast is characterized by diverse hydrography, including numerous rivers, lakes, and reservoirs which play an essential role in its geography, economy, and ecology.

The region contains approximately 4,500 lakes, many of which are of glacial origin, with a combined water surface area of 5.5 million hectares.

The rivers and lakes of Kirov Oblast are integral to the region's natural environment and economy, providing water for agriculture, supporting fisheries, and transportation.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Vyatka remained a place of exile for opponents of the tsarist regime, including many prominent revolutionary figures.

The postwar period was accompanied by rebuilding of the province on the basis of the New Economic Policy (NEP), which consisted of free trade, entrepreneurship, and private sector stimulation.

[11] On 30 October 1997, Kirov, alongside Astrakhan, Murmansk, Ulyanovsk, and Yaroslavl, signed a power-sharing agreement with the government of Russia, granting it autonomy.

Increased specialization in the production of more promising fodder crops like winter rye, barley, oats that are most suited to the Oblast's climatic conditions is anticipated in the future.

[17] The Kirov Oblast is the site of the Rosrezerves' Zenit oil depot in Kotelnich, a large petroleum tank farm installation of the Russian State Reserve.

On 28 August 2024, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it was attacked and set ablaze by a Ukrainian Armed Forces drone strike.

Since 1991, CPSU lost all the power, and the head of the Oblast administration, and eventually the governor was appointed/elected alongside elected regional parliament.