Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Government of the Russian Federation – Government of the Russian Federation –
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A meeting of the coordinating committee for the Decade of Science and Technology was held under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko.
The meeting presented preliminary results of the 5th Congress of Young Scientists and satellite events in 2025, and discussed the results of the implementation of the Decade of Science and Technology plan and proposals for next year.
"I'm sure everyone has already had a chance to stroll around the university grounds. And participants of previous congresses can see how significant and positive the changes are. Both in terms of the presentation of results and in terms of the presence of 'Our Lab'—they're showcasing new equipment, equipment of a different quality—and in terms of education—all of today's presentations and roundtable discussions for young scientists were rich in content. All sections were packed. It's gratifying," said Russian Presidential Aide Andrey Fursenko.
Dmitry Chernyshenko noted that the 5th Congress of Young Scientists is a key event of the Decade of Science and Technology. The popularization of science and support for young talent are already having a visible impact.
"Every year, the Congress of Young Scientists gains momentum, demonstrating increasingly impressive results, living up to its motto, 'The Energy of Science: From the Potential of Knowledge to the Creation of the Future.' The goal set by the President is to ensure Russia's undisputed technological leadership. This year, the congress brought together participants from over 100 countries. Beyond the numbers, we must maintain the unique atmosphere for which the congress is renowned—the openness of Russian science, its scale, and its value, first and foremost for our country, but also for the entire world," the Deputy Prime Minister stated.
He added that the Decade's events are an opportunity to engage talented young people, entrepreneurs, and representatives of the real sector of the Russian economy in the field of science.
"It is imperative that, in addition to achieving the high level of technological leadership, we achieve the tangible target set by the President: increasing science spending to 2% of GDP by 2030, including through increased business investment. Thus, in 2025, agreements were concluded and signed with new partners, including Gazprom Neft, Rosselkhozbank, and Aeroflot, as part of the Decade's thematic initiatives. As part of the Science and Business initiative, more than 790,000 participants from nearly 500 universities took part in events under the federal program, the University Technological Entrepreneurship Platform. Thanks to the program, more than 35,000 university startups have been created, and almost 3 billion rubles have been raised," said Dmitry Chernyshenko.
The government-approved plan for the Decade of Science and Technology includes 12 initiatives, projects, and events. Overall, this year's results demonstrated increased interest in the Decade's activities.
This year, one in five candidates of science will be under 29 years old and one in three doctors of science will be under 39 years old at the Young Scientists Congress. In total, the participants include over 3,000 people with scientific degrees. The total number of candidates of science has increased by 45% compared to 2024, reaching almost 2,500.
Following the meeting, Dmitry Chernyshenko issued a number of instructions, including to the Ministry of Education and Science to collect applications for hosting events associated with the Cabinet of Ministers in 2026 by March 1.
President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Gennady Krasnikov proposed using the platform of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences to more actively engage RAS scientists in discussing the events of the Decade of Science and Technology and improving its instruments.
"Many of our RAS members are responsible for entire areas of the fundamental research program and participate in the work of the Commission on Scientific and Technological Development. And they, like no one else, know where science popularization efforts are most needed today, which areas of fundamental science are underserved, and where the personnel shortage is particularly acute. After all, the development of fundamental science, where it is impossible to prioritize or predict results, must necessarily proceed on a broad front. This means there must be strong research teams across all scientific fields," he noted.
"The Anniversary Congress of Young Scientists demonstrates its scale and steadily growing interest from the scientific and educational communities. Over the past few years, the number of participants and the number of business program events have more than doubled, while the exhibition space and the number of exhibitors grow annually. This year, we focused particularly on new formats of interaction – new discussion formats, interactive exhibits, and industry clusters have been launched. Participants have shown strong interest in expanding the industry agenda, and we plan to continue this work at future congresses," noted Anton Kobyakov, Adviser to the President of Russia and Head of the Interdepartmental Working Group for the Preparation and Holding of the Congress of Young Scientists and Associated Events.
In her speech, Sofia Malyavina, CEO of the National Priorities Autonomous Non-Profit Organization, discussed the progress of the Decade of Science and Technology, scientists, and their developments, and shared the latest sociological research data: "Since 2022, the Nauka.rf portal—the Decade of Science's main resource—has been visited more than 48 million times. Every month, we are seeing an increase in the number of subscribers to our social media groups and channels, as well as visitors and views of materials on the website. Over the course of this period, we have published approximately 9,000 materials on the website."
The meeting of the coordinating committee was also attended by Alexander Smirnov, Head of the Presidential Executive Office for Public Relations and Communications; Denis Sekirinsky, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education; Natalya Virtuozova, General Director of the ANO "Directorate of the Exhibition of Achievements 'Russia'"; Alexey Goreslavsky, General Director of the ANO "Institute for Internet Development"; Maxim Dreval, General Director of the Russian Society "Knowledge"; Elena Shmeleva, Head of the Educational Foundation "Talent and Success"; Artur Orlov, Chairman of the Board of the Russian Movement of Children and Youth "Movement of the First"; and Viktor Sadovnichy, Rector of Moscow State University.
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