On the need to improve the foundations of state strategic planning in the Russian Federation

The authors emphasize that the system of strategic planning in Russia, which began to be updated in 2009-2014, has a number of methodological problems, which does not allow for the effective implementation of legislatively fixed basic principles (tradition of power and continuity), and makes it impossible to phrase a vertical goal setting in the strategic planning system thus violating the principle of decomposition of goals and objectives, and does not allow to achieve a balance in terms of validity of program and strategic documents. The article emphasizes that the principles of systematization of the whole complex of strategic planning documents need to be detailed. It is necessary to define more clearly their hierarchical structure, to develop a typology of these documents, depending on the purpose, the characteristics of vertical and horizontal relationships. The authors conclude that the basic system forming document of the goal-setting should be the “National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation”, which defines Russia's national interests and strategic priorities taking into account the challenges and threats to national security. All other strategic goal-setting documents of a long-term nature should be formed as tools for the implementation of the provisions of this basic strategy; their task is to clarify and detail the directions for ensuring strategic national priorities in relevant areas. It is substantiated that in the hierarchy of strategic planning documents, when developing the “Guidelines for the Government of the Russian Federation”, the provisions of the medium-term forecast of the social and economic development of the Russian Federation, as well as the Decrees of the President of the Russian Federation that legally formulate the Addresses of the President of the Russian Federation should be taken into account. The main areas of activity of the Government of the Russian Federation are a reference point for the development of plans for the activities of federal executive bodies where the provisions of laws mention the development priorities of economic sectors from industry strategies. It is medium-term forecasts, according to the authors, that are the tool for the transition from the goal-setting to planning and programming.