The agenda: developing cross-cutting technologies, extending the programme to reimburse small and medium-sized businesses for the use of fast payment systems and streamlining the procedure for using maternity capital
Mikhail Mishustin’s opening remarks:
Good afternoon, colleagues,
On Monday, the President chaired a meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects. The meeting participants had a detailed discussion on efforts to achieve national goals. The President emphasised that our main task was to improve the quality of life for Russian citizens. The resolution of technological development issues should become the main element in implementing strategic plans and national projects.
I would like to draw your attention to the fact that Government members received a number of instructions at the meeting. Now that Russia is facing restrictions with regard to obtaining foreign high-tech products, the President has urged us to search for new solutions in an intensive and skilled manner and to make effective use of the achievements that have already been made. We need to prioritise the development of cross-cutting technologies that have great significance for creating modern production facilities and manufacturing advanced products.
We need to resume this work while heeding real economic requirements in the current situation. On the President’s initiative, my deputies will oversee every high-tech aspect. They will monitor the situation in specific sectors. Mr Belousov will be in charge of general coordination of this work.
In order to step up the introduction of advanced technologies and solutions based on them, the Government approved digital transformation strategies for key economic and social sectors last year. We have already started updating them. A single centre for coordinating such strategies will also be established. We will also provide opportunities for the accelerated launch of our software and hardware innovations on the market as instructed by the President. These tasks must be completed in the near future.
The Government also constantly monitors the training of IT specialists. It is impossible to shape the technological future without this. It is also important to improve the quality of training for future specialists and boost investment in this area by increasing budget financing. Strategic initiatives already include programmes to upgrade educational equipment, develop university campuses, renovate dormitories, and equip laboratories in universities, industrial workshops, and technical schools, not only for students, but also, of course, for teachers so that they can improve their skills.
Colleagues, all presidential instructions must be executed fully and on time; the development of Russia and the prosperity of our people depend on this.
Before getting down to the agenda, let me speak about the decision to support small and medium-sized businesses: the Government will extend the programme of compensating the costs of using the Russian faster payments system, implemented in line with the President’s instruction, until the end of the year. Small shops and enterprises, cafes and restaurants are reimbursed for bank commissions when consumers pay for their goods and services under this programme. Interest in this tool is growing, as is the number of companies participating in the programme; we already extended it at the end of last year.
The service is convenient for entrepreneurs and clients; it can be used to pay for orders and services, which creates an alternative to traditional payments with bank cards.
We believe that the extension of the programme will provide additional assistance to small and medium-sized businesses at this challenging time and, of course, increase the popularity of the faster payments service.
Now to the agenda.
In line with the Presidential instructions, the Government continues to introduce social treasury mechanisms for the provision of state support to people, which helps to make it quick and easy to receive.
Today we will discuss amendments to legislation that improve the procedure for using maternity capital. It will be easier to spend it on the education of children. In order to do so, it is proposed to expand interagency cooperation between the Pension Fund and educational institutions. The fund’s specialists will be able to request all the necessary information from information systems on their own, without the personal participation of parents, so that families do not need to provide an agreement on the provision of paid educational services.
Next, maternity capital is often used to improve living conditions. Some choose consumer credit cooperatives, including agricultural ones. It is important that these are reliable organisations; they must comply with the requirements of the Central Bank and be included in the relevant list. This is also provided for in the amendments under our consideration.
This decision will make it possible to protect people from risks when purchasing flats or houses.
