The development of innovative scientific and technological centers (ITNCs) was discussed at the key discussion of the first day of the Startup Tour 2024 - the Skolkovo federal project, which started in Khanty-Mansiysk, on the basis of the Ugra High Technologies Technopark on March 28. The speaker of the discussion was the head of the regional direction of the Association of Innovative Regions of Russia (AIRR) Dmitry Mitroshin.
by Alexander Fertman , Director for Science, Technology and Education of the SKOLKOVO Foundation . Participating in the session were First Deputy Governor of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug-Yugra Alexey Zabozlaev , Vice President for Regional and International Development of the SKOLKOVO Foundation Yuri Saprykin , General Director of MIPT Startup Studio LLC Sergey Vakhterov , ShVABE-MOSCOW project manager Alexander Ilyin , Program Manager on working with the ecosystem and funds Gazpromneft - Technological partnerships Kirill Filtsagin .
Opening the Startup Tour 2024, Alexander Fertman noted that “less than a month ago, the Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development was adopted in Russia and, in fact, new emphasis was placed on the development of science, technology, technological production and education.” In his opinion, now there is an opportunity to “reassemble the system of interaction between developers, researchers, entrepreneurs, production workers, federal and regional authorities, since their role is extremely large.”
“Last year, the government decided to create an innovative scientific and technological center “UNITY PARK” in Ugra. The region has invested a lot of effort to protect this project,” noted Alexander Fertman . He asked Deputy Governor of Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug Alexey Zabozlaev to tell us what hopes the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug authorities place on the new ITNC in the context of the new strategy for scientific and technological development .
“This is a joint product of the region with Skolkovo,” noted Alexey Zabozlaev . – 75 thousand square meters on which a university, a technology park, and social infrastructure will be built. Directions - advanced technologies in terms of the country's energy security, advanced technologies in materials for the Far North and the Arctic, health conservation and quality of life of the population. And another direction is unmanned transport systems and infrastructure for them. In general, the task is to develop applied science according to the needs of all spheres of the economy, not only of the region, but of the country as a whole.”
Alexey Zabozlaev spoke about each direction in detail, in particular about the construction of the Center for High Biomedical Technologies in Surgut. According to him, the region has been investing in expensive medical equipment for a long time and today provides high-tech medical services. The new Center will study genes and cells and store data.
Speaking about the direct impact of innovative developments on the regional economy, the Deputy Governor of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug noted the unique support measures that the region is ready to provide to both start-ups and large businesses.
“The most important thing in the INTC is benefits for innovative companies, which can be applied to existing or created infrastructure - SEZ TVT, campuses,” noted Dmitry Mitroshin, head of the regional direction of the Association of Innovative Regions of Russia , in his speech . He especially emphasized the importance of interregional cooperation, without which not a single global project is possible.
“The goals and objectives of the adopted Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development of the Russian Federation cannot be realized within the framework of only one subject, without interregional interaction. Here, for example, is a current topic for Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug from the strategy: the transition to environmentally friendly and resource-saving energy, increasing the efficiency of production and deep processing of hydrocarbons, the formation of new energy sources, methods of its transmission and storage. Increasing production efficiency is a complex topic that requires interaction between universities, laboratories from different regions and oil companies; it is necessary to test certain developments at different sites ,” said Dmitry Mitroshin .
Vice President, Managing Director of the Skolkovo Foundation Yuri Saprykin noted that “close work with the regions is one of Skolkovo’s strengths.” “The Fund’s portfolio includes over 4 thousand residents, most of them - 60-65% - are companies from the regions.”
Dmitry Mitroshin also told the young professionals present at the panel discussion why Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug is more attractive to them today in comparison with the capital:
“We conducted surveys of enterprises in the regions of the Association on the topic of what prevents them from engaging in innovative activities; about 50% of respondents note the problem of a lack of qualified personnel in such areas as information technology, scientific research and analytics, and new materials. INTC "UNITY PARK" It is predicted that there will be a significant increase in high-performance jobs - at least 1,600. The main advantages of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug are the availability of housing with high salaries and a good scientific and technological base in areas in which large customers of the region are interested.”
Khanty-Mansiysk became the first city within the Startup Tour 2024. During the large-scale project, the organizers expect to involve new companies and qualified specialists in the Skolkovo ecosystem.
Let us recall that the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Yugra joined the Association of Innovative Regions of Russia (AIRR) in 2022 at the site of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The decision to join Ugra in the Association was made after an expert assessment of the economic indicators of the district. The range of topics for cooperation is large, first of all, the development of innovation and knowledge-intensive business, interregional cooperation, and youth policy issues.