The Strategic Initiatives Agency (SIA), Vladimir Putin's innovative project, may soon follow in the footsteps of President Dmitri Medvedev's favourite project, Skolkovo. As the RBC Daily discovered, a special institute for advanced training will probably be founded under the ASI, though it will follow the distance education model. Experts consider distance education to be the most innovative form of study, though it will copy some already existing institutions.
According to information provided by the RBC Daily's source within the government apparatus, and confirmed by certain partners from organisations under the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, the possibility of founding a special institute under the Strategic Initiatives Agency is currently being worked on. The institution, which is referred to by the working name, the Institute for Strategic Initiatives (ISI), will engage in advanced training or professional retraining of specialists.
"Most likely, the institute will follow a distance education model, by means of Internet lectures or seminars. The quality of education will be controlled by testing," said the RBC Daily's source from the government apparatus. "Representatives of authorised state or federal universities will participate in the final certification process, upon the distribution of diplomas."
According to plans, the institute will focus on strategic sectors of the economy, as defined by the SIA. It will provide the agency with statistics on personnel availability and the quality of trained specialists. A final decision has not yet been made, though a resolution is expected within the next two weeks. The prime minister's representative, Dmitri Peskov, is not yet involved in the project.
Arsen Khusnutdinov, the founder of Kazan's IT-Park, believes that this institution will become the main instrument of development in key areas of Russia's personnel strategy. "This also raises the question of creating an internet portal for open education resources, similar to Open Course Ware, which is already being used by international institutions such as MIT and Tufts," he said.
Director of the Development and Communications Department of the Russian Venture Company Yevgeny Kuznetsov believes that the distance education model is rapidly gaining momentum in the modern world. "Often, quality teachers can only be attracted through this form of education. Distance education projects fit right in with the innovative atmosphere that the government is creating. In particular, the Russian Venture Company is already managing the Knowledge Stream, a joint venture with Digital October. In general, the distance education market is still undersaturated," Kuznetsov said.
Vladimir Putin announced the intention to create the Strategic Initiatives Agency in May of this year. According to him, the institution should eliminate administrative barriers, and act as a lawyer and producer for medium-sized businesses. SIA's budget in the first stage will amount to 100 million rubles per year, though grant recipients will also have the opportunity to apply for state bank loans.
Vitaly Petlevoy