Fields of Cooperation Between Iran's ICT Park and the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization Were Reviewed

This preliminary meeting was held for negotiation and familiarization regarding joint cooperation between Iran's ICT Park and the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization with the presence of Dr. Mohammad Jafar Sadigh Damghanizadeh, the Advisor to the Minister and the President of ICT Park; Dr. Abbas Ghanbari Baghestan, the Consulter for ICT Park Communication and International Affairs; Andrey Filipov, the Deputy Director of International Cooperation of the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization; and Mark Tverdinin, the Director of International Cooperation of the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization.
In this meeting, Andrey Filipov, the Deputy Director of International Cooperation of the Digital Economy Organization, introduced the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization: "The Autonomous Non-Profit Organization (ANO) of Digital Economy was established in 2017 in line with the implementation of the National Digital Economy Program in the Russian Federation. In the Russian Federation, this organization is the main platform for maintaining suitable interaction between the business sector and the government for the development of the digital economy. The purpose of establishing this organization was to provide services regarding digital economy development in this country, through supporting important social projects and initiatives in this field besides maintaining professional interaction between the business community, scientific and educational organizations, and also other relevant communities and governmental agencies,” he said.
He mentioned the founders of this organization to be those companies active in the field of technology in Russia, governmental companies, financial institutions and development institutions, including MegaFon, Yandex, Mobile TeleSystems (MTS), VimpelCom PAO, Rosatom, Sberbank, Rostec, Mail.ru, Rostelecom, Gazprom Neft, Rusnano, Russian Railway, Russian Venture Corporation (RVC), Agency for Strategic Initiatives (ASI), Russian Post Office, Skolkova Foundation and other similar agencies and institutions.
The Deputy Director of International Cooperation in the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization identified the mission of this organization to be creating an ecosystem-oriented economy for the convenience of citizens' lives and business activities in Russia: "The mentioned mission will be implemented in five different areas, including digital transformation of industries and companies, provision of open and secure infrastructure, training competent personnel for Digital economy, drafting effective regulations, and maintaining international cooperation," he noted.
In the continuation of this meeting, Dr. Mohammad Jafar Sadigh Damghanizadeh, the Advisor to the Minister and the President of ICT Park, thanked the present members at the meeting and introduced the Information and Communication Technology Park: "ICT Park's activities are in the field of information and communication technology, and for this aim, ICT Park hosts several technology companies active in the field of I.C.T," he said.
Referring to the fact that ICT Park, like the Russian Digital Economy Organization, is identified as a platform for interaction between the government and the private sector, the Advisor to the Minister and the President of ICT Park noted that the intended cooperation between ICT Park and the Russian Digital Economy Organization can be maintained in two possible areas. The first area concerns exchanging knowledge and experience between the two parties regarding their activities and functions besides sharing ideas and processes, and the second area concerns establishing cooperation between the companies of the Digital Economy Organization and the technology companies that are associated with ICT Park. This cooperation can be achieved by working on both Iran and Russia’s market besides sharing technology development," he noted.
He further mentioned the areas of joint cooperation for establishing an innovation center: "The first step for cooperation between the two sides is to hold one-day workshops on relevant topics, including suitable methods for financing companies, providing grants, and the ways in which companies can cooperate, or similar topic. . These workshops provide a possible for evaluating most suitable cooperation capacities for the two sides. ICT Park is ready to host the Russian Federation's Digital Economy Organization for discussing the issues concerning Iranian and Russian markets. It is also possible to hold a one-day meeting either in-person or online," he explained.
In the continuation of this meeting, Dr. Abbas Ghanbaribagestan, the Consulter for ICT Park Communication and International Affairs, provided a conclusion to all of the issues discussed in the meeting: "ICT Park is ready for cooperation at all levels and dimensions, including BtoB and cooperation between Iranian and Russian companies, as well as in trades (import and export of technology products) between the two countries. . Nevertheless, it seems that the idea of setting up an "innovation center" can facilitate this cooperation between the two parties within a specific framework and program.," he clarified.
In the end, the Consulter for ICT Park Communication and International Affairs pointed out the necessity of planning for future cooperation based on a specific time frame with specific and achievable goals. In this regard, the ICT Park's international unit is ready to pave the way for this type of programs by holding bilateral or multilateral meetings, online or in person, an in Tehran or in Moscow.
It is worth mentioning; that in the end, it was decided that the next meeting to evaluate the areas of cooperation between the two parties will be followed by holding another meeting in July with the presence of officials from both sides.