Russia's Data Economy project provides over 130 bln rubles to support IT development - deputy PM

MOSCOW. April 17 (Interfax) - Russia's new Data Economy national project will provide more than 130 billion rubles of budget funding in the period to 2030 to support the development of new solutions in the information technology sector, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko said.

"As part of this national project, the objective is to cover all the main areas of the economy of governance with digital platforms that will become the basis for management and government functions and, of course, provision of various services using the latest technologies, including artificial intelligence. And we must ensure the transition of all state IT infrastructure and most of our companies to domestic solutions. And, of course, we need to ensure accelerated development," Chernyshenko said at the international conference Data Fusion 2024.

"For this purpose, the program includes unprecedented measures to support new solutions, scientific research. This is foremost, of course, grants, subsidies, soft loans, totalling more than 130 billion rubles. Therefore, if you are not participating in these programs, this is cause for concern, because you're doing something wrong, ignoring support that you could receive from the state," Chernyshenko said.

The government will also continue to assist in the development of infrastructure and data networks, including with the creation of a satellite cluster, new data processing centers, connection of social institutions to high-speed Internet services and the development of a new field - quantum networks, he said.

In the transition to a data-centric economy, one of the key challenges will be to protect government information systems and individuals' data from cyber threats, Chernyshenko said, adding that measures for cybersecurity, development of the Antifraud and Antiphishing systems and quantum encryption are also included in the Data Economy project.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the government last September to approve a national project to build a data economy for the period to 2030. This project will replace the Digital Economy national project that concludes this year. Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadayev said last October that the government plans to approve the main parameters of the new project by June 1, 2024.