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It is generally recognized in the modern world that transition to an
Information Society is a way to the future of the human civilization.
This transition changes substantially many of the established
perspectives.
The economic research demonstrates that the levels of the companies'
innovative activities increasingly determine their competitive
leverage. Experts estimate that the developed countries owe at least 50
percent of their economic growth over the past two decades to
innovations and development of the knowledge economy, wherein
production and efficient commercial use of knowledge and information
(including results of scientific research and design work) have become
a major development factor.
The official strategic documents - the government's medium-term
program of social and economic development for 2003-2005 and statements
by government officials - rightly articulate the two main goals whose
achievement is necessary for Russia's sustainable social and economic
development:
- Abandoning the scenario of the country's development as a supplier
of raw materials to the world market, altering the structure of the
Russian economy and exports in favor of industries with high added
value and
- Increasing the competitiveness of the national economy and guaranteeing a higher rate of economic growth.
According to a report by the Russian government, prepared for the
sustainable development summit, the proportion of raw materials and
goods with a low degree of processing exceeds 70 percent in the
country's export share and continues to grow. The innovative activity
of the Russian companies remains rather low: the proportion of the
companies actively adopting innovations in the Russian economy was 8.8
percent in 2000, whereas the corresponding average figure for the
European Union was 50 percent (and over 60 percent in Germany).
The usage level of the applied domestic science by the Russian
economy has substantially decreased over the past decade. The
proportion of expenditures on R&D of the gross domestic product has
been around one percent over the past several years (the corresponding
figures for developed countries are between two and four percent, and
in the USSR it was two percent as of 1990). The expenditures on
research and development, measured in fixed prices, have decreased by
threefold compared to 1990 level, and the number of employees in the
scientific research sector decreased more than twice and continues to
fall.
In terms of the main indicators of the information infrastructure
development - both its traditional part and the new ICTs - Russia has
fallen far behind the developed countries. For example, only eight
percent of adults in Russia are Internet users, whereas the
corresponding figure for the European Union is 50 percent.
Economists reckon that the sources of economic growth in Russia
related to the ruble devaluation of the 1998, high oil prices on the
world market, low prices of raw materials and low labor costs on the
domestic market have either been exhausted or are close to exhaustion
and highly unstable.
The aforementioned conditions determining the context of the Russian
e-Development Partnership (PRIOR) activity are substantially different
from those in the developed industrialized countries as well as from
the conditions in the developing world. A specific vision of
development patterns and ways of implementing PRIOR Action Plan in
Russia is needed, which will allow the Partnership to become one of the
key factors in the development of Russia within the global Information
Society and Knowledge Economy .
We are convinced that Russia is facing the necessity of mobilizing
such an important and renewable resource as information and knowledge
for its sustainable economic growth. A national strategy for building
the Information Society and developing the Knowledge Economy strategy
should be worked out for that purpose. As part of this strategy,
reforms in the industrial sector, trade and commercial use of
information and knowledge should be viewed within a system of
interrelated activities.
Development of the Information Society in Russia requires a
proactive government policy and reallocation of "natural rent" (income
from the use of natural resources) from the mining industries to
science, education, information and communication technologies, and
support for innovations. At the same time, a simple redistribution of
funds is not sufficient. It is necessary to accomplish a number of
tasks, including the reform of science and education, the creation of
infrastructure and legal framework that would support commercial use of
applied scientific research and design work, development of the
information and communication infrastructure, etc.
The accomplishment of these large-scale tasks is only feasible
within the framework of a coordinated and efficient policy based on a
thoroughly designed strategy and a program of the development of the
Information Society, which would take into account the opinions and
interests of all major development communities: the government,
business, civil society, research and education community, sponsors and
investors.
A strategic document entitled The Main Aspects of the Russia's Long-Term Social and Economic Development was
approved by the government in 2001. It contains some items dealing with
the strategy for Russia's development in the Information Age. However,
they are integrated into a very broad context of problems for Russia's
development and are not clearly formulated or systematized. In January
2002, the Russian government approved a special federal program “"
(eRussia) ; nonetheless, it is primarily aimed at resolving the
government functioning problems. The preparation of a national strategy
"Russia in the Information Age" had been started after the launch of
the eRussia program (in accordance with Resolution #135 of November 18,
2002 by the Minister of RF for Communications and Informatization).
An important condition for the successful implementation of the
"Russia in the Information Age" strategy is active participation and
close cooperation between all forces of the Russian society, interested
in postindustrial development. Therefore, it is feasible to talk about
the national strategy, which would be prepared and implemented by all
the major development communities. Achievement of a new level and
standard of interaction between the government, business, scientists
and experts, sponsors and investors on the basis of equal partnership,
coordination of interests, sharing risks and responsibilities to make a
substantial contribution to the achievement of a common strategic goal
may have a significant effect on the processes of the country's
development at the national, regional, and local levels. This
corresponds to modern strategies and global practice, and PRIOR views
ensuring such an approach as one of its key tasks.
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