Lost: the authorities decide the fate of RVC, Skolkovo and other institutions of innovative development - expert opinions

In December 2014, the President of the Russian Federation called the program to create a “National Technology Initiative” one of the priorities of state policy. “The meaning of the“ National Initiative ”is precisely to create conditions in our country for the development of industries that will become the leading sectors in the global economy, maybe even not now, but in 20–25 years,” explained in October 2015 Prime Minister.



Now Dmitry Medvedev has given several instructions to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Development:



• work out the integration of the Skolkovo Foundation and the Russian Venture Company ( RVC );

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• think about the joint work of Skolkovo and the Agency for Strategic Initiatives ( ASI ) on the National Technology Initiative (NTI);



• to coordinate the work of Skolkovo with the Foundation for Assistance to the Development of Small Forms of Enterprises in the Scientific and Technical Sphere (the so-called Bortnik Fund );



• address the issue of moving RVC and the Bortnik Fund to Skolkovo;



• extend tax breaks to innovation centers in other regions;



The state budget is declining and it is logical to support only those areas that could allow the country to lead in new markets.



RVC and Skolkovo integration director of the Young Professionals Department at ASI, Dmitry Peskov, considers natural, reports Vedomosti. Skolkovo will be able to help with the expertise of NTI projects, he explains. In addition, startups from Skolkovo can join the NTI working groups and vice versa - Skolkovo will provide the infrastructure to companies already entering the NTI that are not located in Skolkovo, Peskov hopes.

By integration, Peskov understands, first, the possible change in the investment mandates of both development institutions and the pooling of their financial resources. Secondly, Skolkovo and RVC have their own start-up support programs and it is logical to synchronize their calendar, results and experts, Peskov believes. Hence the idea of ​​placing RVC in Skolkovo, explains Peskov: the effectiveness of integration will only increase from this.

The Foundation for Assistance to the Development of Small Forms of Enterprises in the Scientific and Technical Sphere already cooperates with the Skolkovo Foundation and with RVC, says Ivan Bortnik, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Foundation. Coordination would be more effective, firstly, if development institutions together would adjust investment plans to make it easier for fund projects to receive the next round of funding at Skolkovo, he said. Secondly, if the fund could use the expertise and infrastructure of Skolkovo. And possible territorial integration will facilitate coordination, concludes Bortnik.



Moreover, the government was considering the issue of joining the Bortnik Fund to another institute of innovative development. In this connection, Rosnano and Skolkovo were mentioned in the government.



Ekaterina Shapochka, a member of the Expert Council under the Government, claims that Skolkovo has created one of the best systems for scientific examination of projects, but it will have to be expanded, since the subject matter of NTI goes beyond the directions of Skolkovo clusters.



On February 7, Megamind wrote that a meeting was held in the Kremlin on the development of the Russian innovation system with the participation of representatives of the Expert Council under the Government. Apparently, innovative state projects do not solve the tasks.



At the end of January 2016, Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said that “it remains to be decided” whether the existing structures will survive - Rosnano, RVK, Bortnik Foundation, VEB Innovations, Skolkovo.