OREANDA-NEWS. July 14, 2011. The Government of Karelia has approved the concept of the long-term target program of The State Support of Innovation Activity in the Republic of Karelia for the period from 2011 to 2015. The Ministry of Economic Development of the republic is charged with development of the draft program on the basis of the concept.

Formation of the regional innovatione system in the republic is one of the factors of economic growth built into the Strategy of Social and Economic Development of Karelia through 2020.

Since 2005 to 2009 the technological innovations expenditures of organizations have grown 19-fold from 0,17 billion roubles to 3,23 billion roubles. In the past 5 years organizations of the republic have created more than 20 advanced industrial technologies, and have introduced about 3000.

However, despite of positive tendencies the level of scientific and innovative development in Karelia is insufficient. According to the State Statistics Service of Karelia, less than 5% of organizations are engaged in innovative activity, and the volume of innovative production in 2009 has made 1.3%, that is a little less than on the average in Russia.

The program to be will allow to concentrate the state support of scientific and innovation activity on solution of fundamental problems, to consolidate all the state-financed and unappropriated resources.

To arrange favorable conditions for innovation activity it is necessary to support accelerated development of the competitive sector of research and development, to form and develop the expert training system in the sphere of innovation activity, to arrange conditions to introduce advanced technologies.

Implementation of the program by 2015 is expected to provide not less than 60% growth in production of innovative products a year, three-fold increase of the number of organizations which introduce innovations, creation no less than 60 small and medium enterprises engaged in innovation activity, with no less than one thousand workplaces total.