State companies will boost their investment in innovations by 60 percent next year to 1.5 trillion rubles ($50 billion), Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Monday.
“This year, companies with state stakes will channel about 950 billion rubles into their innovation programs. Next year, domestic demand for innovations driven by state companies alone will grow to 1.5 trillion,” Putin told a government commission meeting on the high-tech industry and innovation.
State-owned companies should play a key role in innovation processes, the premier said.
The Russian government has lately stepped up its efforts to diversify the domestic economy by reducing its dependence on oil and gas exports, developing high tech and encouraging R&D work.
As a key part of the government’s drive to modernize Russia's commodity-dependent economy, Russia has launched the construction of the Skolkovo high-tech hub near Moscow, which is intended to be an ultra-modern science community for the development and commercialization of new technologies.
The hub will focus on research in five priority areas: energy, information technology, communication, biomedical research and nuclear technology.
The premier also said that the salaries of top managers at state companies should be contingent on the ability of these entities to achieve key innovative development indicators.
“And finally, I propose that the list of enterprises with state participation that should be obliged to work out innovative development programs should be expanded. I request that the Economics Ministry formulate its proposals on this issue and consider how to raise the efficiency of innovative programs with state participation.”
