The basic parameters of the scientific and technical activity in the Republic of Belarus and in the of the NWFD of the RF

The up-to-date part of the new economy’s formation in the post-socialist countries is critical in the context of the processes determining the transition from the industrial paradigm of development to the postindustrial one. The development of this paradigm’s structural basis (i. e. national innovational systems) led to both the essential increase of the scientific and technical potential in some countries and to the serious expansion and intensification of the traditional researches’ spheres which along with the development of the new branches of the scientific knowledge and with the interdisciplinary approach led to the objective impossibility of the full-fledged scientific development in a separate state.

Thus, for activation of the innovational development of any scientific and technical activity’s subject (a country, a region, an organization, and a group) forming strong relations with foreign partners is necessary. In the mentioned context the scientific task lies in the optimization of the selection process of a partner, which interaction will secure the synergetic effect. The logic of the directions’ definition of the coordinated innovational development is connected with studying the opportunities caused by the developed scientific and technical potential, and the needs determined by the specific character of the economic and sociocultural development of Belarus and Russia’s North-West federal district.

Two directions of the quantitative analysis are possible. The first one is connected with the partners’ and absolute characteristics (for example, the size of the territory, the gross national product, the level of employment in economy) and, accordingly, with their scientific and technical potentials. The second direction is caused by the structural hierarchy’s presence in the elements of cooperating innovational systems (of a country or a region).

The analysis of the scientific and technical cooperation’s system organized between the subjects, representing different levels of interaction means carrying out estimation of the start conditions determined by the inno-vational potential of a country (a branch, an organization). In this research’s context the innovational potential can be defined as a set of personnel, material, financial and information resources of the scientific and technical sphere and innovational infrastructure providing its efficient functioning. The general definition of potential can be adapted to different levels, including supranational, national, regional, branch-wise levels and a level of an enterprise.

The general characteristic of the partners (NWFD and Belarus) shows the fundamental similarity of the basic development’s aspects of their socio-economic and scientific-technical spheres. Against the background of the general tendency of the advancing but non-stable growth of the production volumes (with the fluctuations’ amplitude from 5 to 10%) the high degree of the reserves’ deterioration is marked, which is aggravated by the insufficient size of investment (from 5 to 7% of the reserves’ cost).

The period of the production base’s renewal can make 30 years. The partners do not possess the developed hi-tech production’s clusters. In the foreign commerce turnover the structural deformations caused by the significant share of the products’ export with the low added cost are noted while the import streams are directed on the goods with a bigger quantity of technological repartitions. As a result the competitiveness of the majority of Belarus’ and Russia’s production is basically determined by the relative cheapness at the sufficient basic degree of quality.

Thus, the enterprises work within the framework of the classical model “demand and supply”, but the non-price determinants of demand practically do not operate. The traditional character of the produced commodity groups does not allow receiving additional profits from the practical realization of the temporary monopolies’ concept created by means of the exclusive production’s release.

The comparative analysis shows the partners’ fundamental adequacy in the actual sizes of the economy. So, at the eightfold territorial superiority of North-West federal district the higher population density in Belarus provides approximate labor potential’s comparability. At the relative specific equivalence of the industrial development we should note the importance of the Belarus agrarian sector. The difference in the gross national product’s size per head in Belarus to North-West federal district makes 1.4 times; in the specific volumes of the retail trade this difference makes 1.6 times. In the gross output of North-West federal district the weight of wages is more that causes the greater consumption potential of the Russian workers (tab. 1).

In the conditions of the raising inequality of the world development the major task is providing high rates of economic growth. Thus escalating of the scientific and technical potential should make the basis of the progressive development. The measures of optimization of the ratio between new knowledge and its use in the real sector of economy, of increase of the investments’ effectiveness in scientific-technical and innovational activity are necessary. On the other hand, the scientific and technical potential’s contribution to the competitiveness’

Table 1. The comparative analysis of the socio-economic potential of Belarus and Russia’s North-West federal district (by the data of 2008)

Parameter	Country / District / Region				NWFD to Belarus , times
	Russia	Including NWFD	Including Vologda region	Republic of Belarus
Territory, thous. km2	17098.2	1687.0	144.5	207.6	8.1
Population, thousand people	142008.8	13501.1	1223.0	9,690	1.4
Mid-annual number of the workers occupied in economy, thous. people	67174.0	6801.1	613.7	4,594	1.5
Gross regional output, billion doll.	867.4	84.4	8.1	44.7	1.9
Gross regional output per head, doll.	6108.5	6251.9	6623.1	4614.3	1.4
Average monthly wages of workers in economy, doll.	526.4	581.5	502.5	323.0	1.8
Capital assets for a person occupied in economy, million doll.	27.5	28.5	30.3	34.6	0.8
Investments into capital assets for a person occupied in economy, million doll.	3.8	4.6	4.7	2.6	1.7
Volume of the industrial output for a person occupied in economy, thous. doll.	11.4	13.0	19.9	9.7	1.3
Volume of agricultural production for a person occupied in economy, thous. doll.	1.2	0.6	1.3	2.5	0.2
Turnover of the retail trade, billion doll.	422.3	39.6	2.2	17.8	2.2
Turnover of the retail trade per head, doll.	2974.0	2933.3	1833.3	1837.0	1.6
The average USA dollar exchange rate (according to the data of the National bank of Belarus), RB rubles				2,149
The average USA dollar exchange rate (according to the data of the National bank of Russia), RF rubles	25.7

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4 500

4 000

3 500

3 000

2 500

2 000

1 500

1 000

Dynamics of the number of organizations carrying out scientific researches

4 329

North-West federal district

Sources: Regions of Russia: Socio-economic indices. 2009: stat. coll. / Russian statistics. – Moscow, 2009. – P. 782; Belarus and Russia. 2009: stat. coll. / Belarus statistics; Russian statistics; Committee of the Allied state. – Moscow, 2009. – P. 129.

growth depends on the macroeconomic environment in the country, on the development of infrastructure, on normative legal provisioning, on adequacy of the measures on the state innovational, structural-investment and industrial policy.

The scientific core is made up of the research organizations and groups working in them. At the period from 1995 till 2008 the number of organizations carrying out scientific researches decreased for 9.7% in Russia, for 17% in NWFD, and for 15% in Belarus (figure) . The increase became possible due to the growth of the research organizations’, higher educational institutions’ and industrial organizations’ quantity, against the background of the reduction of design offices’, experimental plants’ and survey organizations’ number.

Organizations, carrying out researches, concentrate in large cities: in Belarus it is Minsk (203 units, or 62%), in NWFD it is Saint Petersburg (361 units, or 68%), i.e. the scientific clusters in NWFD and Belarus are generated according to the focal-geographical principle.

Insufficient development of the “factory science” (scientific divisions at the industrial enterprises) is characteristic. The share of the industrial enterprises, carrying out researches, in the total number of the scientific organizations made 19.8% (65 units) in Belarus in 20081, and 7% (265 units) in the Russian Federation in 20072.

The number of personnel occupied with researches, for 10 thousand of the people occupied in economy, both in NWFD and in RB has not essentially varied recently. Thus the researchers’ concentration in NWFD two times surpasses the level of Belarus (tab. 2) .

Despite of the relative stability of the scientific staff’s number, the increase of qualifying and age disproportions is observed. In particular, the tendency of the scientific staff’s ageing is traced. The significant share of Belarus and Russian

Table 2. Dynamics of the number of personnel carrying out scientific researches (for 10 thousand people occupied in economy), people

Country / region Year 2008/2002, % 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 The Russian Federation, including 133 131 126 122 120 118 111 83.5 North-West federal district, including 168 165 161 155 152 152 146 86.9 Vologda region 7 7 9 8 9 8 8 114 Republic of Belarus 68 66 64 69 66 69 69 101.4 Sources: [Electronic resource]. – Access mode: ; Science; Innovations and technologies in Belarus. 2008: stat. coll. – Minsk, 2009. – P. 54. researchers is of the pension age. Nowadays in Belarus the share of Doctors of Science older 60 years makes 33.7% and the share of Candidates of science older 60 years make 23%; in NWFD the situation is almost the same.

Thus, despite of the specificity of the scientific work based on the extended productive age, the conditions for breaks in the personnel chain, for decrease of the succession level at scientific schools, for increases of probable loss of knowledge not included into scientific reports and skills of the research activity are created.

In the territorial aspect the personnel potential is dispersed irregularly. The most part of the scientific staff is concentrated in Minsk and Saint Petersburg. In 2008 the number of personnel made 23.7 and 44.7 thousand people accordingly (or 75.4 and 83.9% of their total number). The staff of the superior level of proficiency (Doctors and Candidates of Science) is also dispersed in the same way. In 2008 in Minsk its quantity made 83.3% (3,224 people) of its total number, and in Saint Petersburg its quantity was 83.7% (11,753 people).

The scientific personnel potential’s concentration in capitals and regional centers is characteristic for all CIS countries. As a rule, all fundamental and applied science is concentrated in such “points of an attraction”. Scientific institutions existing at a local level are mainly occupied with the decision of the minor problems focused on getting the commercial effect in the short-term period.

In North-West federal district the share of the researchers in the total number of the personnel occupied with researches makes 54%. In Belarus the share of the researchers is 5% higher, than in NWFD, and 10% higher than in the Russian Federation in general.

At the period from 2000 till 2008 the number of the Russian and Byelorussian researchers decreased, the number of the design offices and organizations that caused the decrease of the scientists’ qualitative level the innovational potential was reduced.

For the mentioned period in Belarus the share of Doctors of Science decreased for 0.3%, the share of Candidates of Science decreased for 1.3% (tab. 3) . In Russia insignificant structural fluctuations of the staff of the superior level of proficiency are observed. We can note that in the structure of the Belarus researchers the share of the staff with scientific degrees is rather low.

Table 3. Share of the researchers with a scientific degree of Doctor of Science, Candidate of science, %

Parameter	Russia		Including NWFD		Belarus
	2000	2008	2000	2008	2002	2008
Researchers in total,	100	100	100	100	100	100
Including:with a scientific degree – doctor of science	5	7	5	6	2.6	2.3
– candidate of science	20	20	21	20	11.3	10.0
without a scientific degree	75	73	74	74	86.1	87.7

Sources: Regions of Russia. Socio-economic indices. 2009: stat. coll. / Russian statistics. – Moscow, 2009. – P. 786; Science, innovations and technologies in Belarus. 2008: stat. coll. / Byelorussian statistics. – Minsk, 2009. – P. 58.

Personnel problems in many respects are caused by low image of the scientific work, by low solvent demand for the research results, by absence of the effective mechanisms of attraction and keeping experts in the scientific and technical sphere.

In 2008 in NWFD 196 organizations (in RB – 116 organizations) were engaged in post-graduate students’ preparation (for one organization it made, accordingly, 94 and 37 post-graduate students). As a rule, within the framework of the postgraduate studies the time period of three years is established for preparation and presentation of a dissertational research. In 2008 in Byelorussia preparation of Doctors of Science was fulfilled by 38 organizations, in NWFD it was fulfilled by 65 organizations (for one organization it made, accordingly, 3 and 10 Doctors of Science).

The efficiency of Candidates’ and Doctors’ preparation is at a rather low level (tab. 4) .

As a whole it is possible to note, that the share of the successful postgraduate studies’ completion with presentation of a dissertation in both considered territorial units is insignificant. In 2008 in RB 3.5% of post-graduate students of their total completion number finished studies with presentation of their dissertations, in NWFD the share is 22%. Among the probable reasons is insufficiency of the three-year period for the high-grade carrying out of the educational and scientific plan, especially in view of the procedural and design aspects of the dissertation’s preparation and of the multistage admission for its presentation. Besides, the existing level of the research grant does not allow the post-graduate student to concentrate completely on the research activity. As a matter of fact, in view of the raised material demands in the youth segment and the growing cost of a basket of goods, a post-graduate student faces to a choice: either to be occupied with the nonprofile work or, in view of the poor financial position of scientists, to seek for prospects of his/her personal potential in a more highly paid sphere.

Recently the positive dynamics of growth of the internal expenses for researches has been kept (tab. 5) . Thus the science intensiveness of Belarus gross national product, making 0.97% (0.75% in 2008), seriously remain behind the parameter achieved in NWFD (1.66%). We can note that in the nearest future the European Union intends to reach the 3% level of the science intensiveness of the gross national product. In Sweden and Finland this level has already been surpassed.

Thus, the dynamics and the level of the science intensiveness of the gross national product in Belarus (less than 1%) and in NWFD of the Russian Federation (about 1.5%) do not show that the mentioned countries really follow the innovational way (from the economic safety’s point of view the critical level of the science intensiveness should make 1%).

The basic source of means for carrying out scientific researches is the state budget (in Belarus

Table 4. The basic parameters of the activity of Postgraduate and Doctoral Studies in Belarus and NWFD, 2008

Parameter	Belarus	NWFD
Postgraduate study entrance (2005), people	1,508	6,200
Postgraduate study completion (2008), people	1,083	4,100
Postgraduate study completion to entrance, %	71.8	66
Postgraduate study completion with presentation of the dissertation (2008), people	38	900
Postgraduate study completion with presentation of the dissertation to entrance, %	3.5	22
Doctoral Studies completion, people	53	197
Doctoral Studies completion with presentation of the thesis for a doctor’s degree, people	4	31
Doctoral Studies completion with presentation of the thesis for a doctor’s degree to completion, %	7.5	15.7
Sources: Conditions and perspectives of the scientific development in the Republic of Belarus in 2008: analytical report / I.V. Voitov [and oth.]. – Minsk, 2009. – P. 29; The basic parameters of the development of the North-West federal district’s regions. 2009: stat. coll. – Vologdastat, 2009. – P. 166.

Table 5. Internal expenses for researches in gross national product, %

Country / district / region 2004 2005 2006 2007 The Russian Federation 1.34 1.23 1.25 1.25 North-West federal district 1.72 1.66 1.69 1.66 Vologda region 0.05 0.04 0.06 0.07 Belarus 0.63 0.68 0.66 0.97 Sources: [Electronic resource]. – Access mode: Science, innovations and technologies in Belarus. 2008: analytical report / I.V. Voitov [and oth.]. – Minsk, 2009. – P. 17. it makes 50%, in Russia it makes 60%). Thus the shares of the charges on fundamental investigations are approximately equal and make 15 and 17% accordingly.

For several years the positive tendency of increasing the number of the patents’ for inventions has been marked. Nevertheless, in their quantity for 1 million inhabitants Russia’s regions remain behind the industrially advanced countries in 3 times, Belarus remains behind in 5 times.

The densities of the expenses for technological innovations in the total amount of the sold enterprises’ production made 5.5% in Russia, and 4.2% in Belarus. In the structure of expenses for technological innovations the charges on the equipment’s purchase (i. e. on the ready decisions’ purchase) prevail, whereas in the leading countries the basic share accounts for researches (up to 80% of expenses). The goods’ cost paid by the Russians and

Belarus include the cost of foreign scientists’ work and the cost of transnational corporations’ scientific and technical activity instead of providing employment and worthy payment level within own innovational economy.

For the recent five years the share of the new production in the total amount of the industrial production increased to 14% in Belarus and to 3.4% in NWFD (tab. 6) . In the industrially advanced countries the bottom rate is 30%.

In the context of the foreign commerce organization there is a steady negative balance on technologies, services of technical character and hi-tech goods. For instance, in Belarus these commodity groups’ import exceeds the export (1.9 and 2.6 times accordingly). In Russia in general and in NWFD in particular the technologies’ and the technical services’ import exceeds export (2.2 and 1.7 times accordingly).

The innovational activity of organizations is still low: in Belarus it hardly makes 17%,

Table 6. Innovational activity of the organizations in Belarus and in NWFD

Parameter Year 2008 / 2004 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 1. The number of organizations carrying out innovational activity, units Belarus 292 318 378 380 371 1.27 Russia 2,532 2,708 3,285 3,339 N/d 1.32* NWFD 287 290 401 357 360 1.25 2. Densities of the organizations, carrying out innovational activity, in the total number of the organizations, % Belarus 13 14.1 16.3 17.8 17.6 1.35 Russia 9.6 9.7 9.9 10 N/d 1.04* NWFD 9.1 9.4 11 9.8 N/d 1.08* 3. Volume of the innovational goods, works, services (in percentage to the total amount of goods, works. services) Belarus 11.9 15.2 14.8 14.8 14.2 1.19 Russia 5.3 5 4.7 4.6 N/d 0.87* NWFD 2.4 3.3 4.4 3.4 N/d 1.42* *2007 / 2004, times. Sources: [Electronic resource]. – Access mode: ; Science, innovations and technologies in Belarus. 2008: stat. coll. / Belarus statistics. – Minsk, 2009. – P. 142. in NWFD it makes about 10%. The innova-tional infrastructure is not developed, 10 technological parks are registered in Belarus (only two of them work effectively), and in NWFD 3 parks operate.

According to the analysis we can draw the conclusion that for the national innovational systems of Belarus and North-West federal district of the Russian Federation the problems of reproduction and use of the scientific and technical potential are characteristic. It is possible to conclude, that at the present moment they do not form the conditions for the reduction of the qualitative backlog from the level of the innovational sphere’s development in the leading countries of the world. The long-term negative trends still operate: the outflow of the personnel occupied with researches; the low level of the science intensiveness of the gross national product; the insufficient densities of the added cost of the high technology production in the gross national product; the reduction of innovatively active enterprises’ quantity; backwardness of the hi-tech sector of economy; the negative trade balance of the innovational production. All this constrains the real increase of competitiveness of Byelorussian and Russian economies.

For NWFD of the Russian Federation and for Belarus the unfairly long terms of the technologies’ use, the high degree of the technical equipment’s deterioration are characteristic.

The reasons of the backlog also lie in the low innovational activity of enterprises. It is connected with insufficient research financing and with the enterprises’ shortage of means for purchase of highly effective technologies. Besides they have no sufficient motivation for active investment into scientific development. The market of intellectual property does not work in full force. The innovational infrastructure is not developed and the rates of its subjects’ creation are low.

One of the main obstacles in involving scientific and technical potential to the decision of the problems of Byelorussian and Russian economies’ modernization is the existing isolation of managing subjects’ and scientific organizations’ interrelations. It is necessary to intensify the activity on the joint innovational productions’ creation in two mentioned countries, also within the framework of innovational infrastructures.

Nevertheless, there is also some peculiarity in the development of Belarus and NWFD that allows expecting the synergetic effect from the construction of the complementary cooperation system based on the use of absolute and comparative advantages. Integration of the efforts for overcoming the problems marked above will allow increasing scientific and technical potential of Belarus and NWFD, and raising the efficiency of its use.