State interested in Skolkovo development, construction should be speed up - Medvedev
SKOLKOVO. Dec 11 (Interfax) - It is necessary to speed up the construction of the Skolkovo innovation center facilities, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said.
"The state is interested in the project developing successfully and to make sure that the resources allocated for it from the budget are invested as efficiently as possible of course," Medvedev said when speaking at the Skolkovo foundation board meeting on Wednesday.
As to the construction of Skolkovo, it is taking off now, the prime minister said.
"However, it is necessary to build quicker because the speed is a little slower than planned," Medvedev said.
As of now, over 1,000 companies and residents have been registered, about 13,000 new high-tech jobs and over 30 international and Russian enterprises have been created and it is still planned to establish research centers in Skolkovo, Medvedev said.
"The foundation has given grants worth over 1.5 billion rubles for projects of our academy's scientists," the prime minister said.
The project of establishing a technological university exists, Medvedev said. "The endowment has been formed, first students - 70 people - have been enrolled and teachers have been invited," he said. Half of teaching the personnel has been employed from abroad, he said.
Major companies are already using the achievements of Skolkovo residents to resolve strategic tasks in such spheres as energy, medicine, pharmacy, IT and others, Medvedev said.
