Russia to send “digital attachés” to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan

From 2022, “digital attachés” will appear in Russian trade missions in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and 14 other countries, Spot reports with reference to kommersant.ru.

New employees will promote Russian IT products abroad. They will also provide consulting and legal support to IT companies from Russia.

The creation of the institution of “digital attachés” is included in the list of measures to support the Russian IT industry, approved in September 2021. At the first stage, they will appear in 16 countries – in addition to the above, this includes Germany, India, Iran, Turkey, the UAE and others.
 
According to Deputy PM Dmitry Chernyshenko, by the end of 2024, “digital attachés” will work in 28 countries. They must have a higher education, know the language of the host country and the legislation in the field of trade, as well as understand the IT field.
 
Recruitment is handled by the Ministry of Digital Development. Together with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Russian Fund for Developing Information Technologies, it is responsible for the work of “digital attachés”.

The Russoft Association of Russian Developers estimated the export of IT products from Russia for 2020 at $7 billion, taking into account sales of overseas offices – $8.6 billion. In 2021, growth will be about 20%, in particular – due to the Middle East and South East Asia.

“The demand for IT in the world as a whole has grown, and our services and products have become more profitable due to the devaluation of the ruble,” Valentin Makarov, head of Russoft, said.

He supported the idea, but pointed out that in order to increase exports by more than 2-3% per year, this should be done by business representatives. In addition to salaries, it is important to stimulate them with a percentage of sales, Makarov added.

“Digital attachés” will help develop contacts in the field of high technologies, ex-Minister of Digital Development Konstantin Noskov said. They can also track IT initiatives in which Russian businesses can participate.