Strategy for the Development of the Information Society in the Russian Federation for 2017-2030 (Presidential Decree No. 203 of May 9, 2017)

Executive Summary

The Strategy for the Development of the Information Society in the Russian Federation for 2017-2030, approved by Presidential Decree No. 203 on May 9, 2017, is a foundational strategic planning document that defines the goals, objectives, and measures for implementing state policy in the sphere of information and communication technologies (ICT). The Strategy replaced an analogous document from 2008 and reflected a qualitatively new stage of digital environment development, characterized by mass Internet penetration, the emergence of big data, cloud computing, the Internet of Things, and early forms of artificial intelligence.

The Strategy's central objective is formulated ambitiously — the creation of conditions for forming a "knowledge society" in Russia, where the acquisition, preservation, production, and dissemination of reliable information hold predominant importance. The document covers an extraordinarily broad range of issues: from the development of information infrastructure and the creation of competitive Russian IT technologies to the formation of a digital economy, ensuring information security, and regulating international relations in the information space.

The Strategy is distinguished by its comprehensive approach, linking technological development with social, cultural, and value-based dimensions. It underscores the need to preserve traditional spiritual and moral values, counteract "clip thinking" (superficial information consumption), and ensure the information sovereignty of the state. The document is mandatory for all government authorities and local self-government bodies and serves as the basis for developing state and departmental programs in the ICT sphere. It represents arguably the most comprehensive Russian policy framework for the country's digital transformation trajectory through 2030.

Key Provisions

Formation of a knowledge society: The central goal is the transition from an information society to a knowledge society, where priority is given to reliable information and its application for the development of the individual, economy, and state.
Digital economy: The Strategy provides an extensive definition of the digital economy as economic activity in which data in digital form is the key factor of production. It envisions the creation of a digital economy ecosystem based on organizational partnerships combining technology platforms, Internet services, analytics systems, and government information systems.
Technologically independent software: The document introduces the concept of "technologically independent software and services" — software that can be used throughout the Russian Federation, is supported by Russian organizations, has no forced updates from abroad, and does not carry out unauthorized data transfers.
Priority technologies: Key development directions are identified — next-generation network convergence, big data processing, artificial intelligence, cloud and fog computing, the Internet of Things and industrial Internet, robotics, radio engineering, and information security.
Import substitution: The Strategy directly mandates the replacement of imported equipment, software, and electronic components with Russian analogues to ensure technological and production independence and information security.
Internet sovereignty: The Strategy advocates the sovereign right of the state to regulate the national Internet segment; creation of systems ensuring stable and independent functioning of the Russian Internet segment; development of international legal frameworks for Internet governance.
Knowledge information space: Formation of a safe information environment, counteraction of destructive content, development of the National Electronic Library, support for traditional media and forms of knowledge dissemination, spiritual and moral education measures.
Data localization: Ensuring data processing on Russian servers for electronic interactions between persons located within Russia; storage of organizational activity data exclusively on servers within Russian territory.
Regulation of digital platforms: Improvement of regulation covering Internet television, news aggregators, social networks, and messaging services — platforms that share many characteristics with traditional media but are not formally classified as such.

Goals and Timelines

Primary goal: Creation of conditions for forming a knowledge society in Russia by 2030.

Implementation timeline:

Deadline	Measure
By October 1, 2017	Government approval of the list of Strategy implementation indicators and the implementation plan
6 months from signing	Amendment of strategic planning documents of federal executive bodies in accordance with the Strategy
2017-2030	Strategy implementation period
Annually	Evaluation of the effectiveness of federal executive body heads and regional leaders in implementing the Strategy

Specific indicators: The Strategy delegates to the Government the approval of a specific list of indicators reflecting: assessment of ICT development; assessment of information society development; parameters of digital economy formation and its impact on GDP; status of transition to knowledge-intensive technologies.

Contextual data from the document: By 2016, over 80 million users of the Russian Internet; over 34 million citizens connected to the electronic government services system; Internet commerce volume reached 2.3% of GDP (2015); average of two mobile subscriber numbers per Russian citizen.

Implementation Mechanisms

Responsible bodies: Implementation is ensured through coordinated actions of the Government of the Russian Federation, the Presidential Administration, the Security Council apparatus, federal executive authorities, the Central Bank, regional authorities, local self-government bodies, state extra-budgetary funds, development institutions, state corporations, and private companies.

Financial provision: Budget allocations from the federal budget, budgets of RF constituent entities, local budgets, funds from state extra-budgetary funds and extra-budgetary sources, including funds from development institutions, state-owned companies, and state corporations. Private investment in information infrastructure is actively encouraged.

Planning: Coordinated planning and implementation of measures are carried out on the basis of strategic planning documents using strategic management coordination mechanisms. Strategy measures are taken into account when forming and adjusting state programs of the Russian Federation and its constituent entities.

Compliance oversight: Annual evaluation of the effectiveness of federal and regional leaders in implementing the Strategy. The Strategy's provisions and its implementation plan are mandatory for all government authorities and local self-government bodies, establishing clear accountability.

Program adjustment: Necessary changes are introduced into state programs in accordance with the implementation plan. Federal executive authorities include Strategy implementation measures in their activity plans. Regional authorities adjust their strategic documents accordingly, creating alignment across all levels of government.

Industry Impact

The Strategy for the Development of the Information Society has had a systemic impact on Russia's IT industry and adjacent economic sectors, setting a long-term vector for state policy in the area of digitalization.

Digital transformation: The Strategy became the conceptual foundation for the national program "Digital Economy of the Russian Federation," launched in 2017. This program operationalized the Strategy's provisions through federal projects on regulatory frameworks, human resources, information infrastructure, information security, and digital technologies, with multi-billion-ruble budgets.

Import substitution: The Strategy enshrined at the highest regulatory level the course toward replacing imported equipment and software with Russian analogues, preceding and preparing the ground for more stringent measures such as Presidential Decree No. 166 of 2022. The concept of "technologically independent software" became a guiding principle for developers and a benchmark for certification.

Electronic government and public services: The Strategy accelerated the transition of government agencies to using e-government infrastructure, the development of the public services portal (Gosuslugi), and inter-agency electronic interaction. Digital public services have since become an integral part of citizens' interaction with the state, with hundreds of millions of service requests processed annually.

Regulation of Internet platforms: Provisions on regulating news aggregators, messaging services, and social networks received legislative development through a series of federal laws establishing requirements for data storage, user identification, and content moderation. This included the so-called "Yarovaya laws" on communications data retention and subsequent regulatory measures.

Internet sovereignty: The Strategy's provisions on creating systems for stable and independent functioning of the Russian Internet segment were implemented through the Federal Law on the "sovereign Internet" (2019), which provided for the creation of technical infrastructure for autonomous Runet operation, including deep packet inspection systems and traffic routing mechanisms.

Investment climate: The Strategy identified priority investment directions — big data, AI, cloud technologies, IoT — attracting attention from both state and private investors. Conditions were created for forming major Russian IT ecosystems, with companies like Yandex, VK, and Sber expanding their digital service portfolios in alignment with the Strategy's vision.

International cooperation: The Strategy strengthened Russia's positions in international discussions on Internet governance and the digital economy, including within the EAEU framework, defining rules for access of goods and services to the internal markets of member states and promoting integration of Russian standards with international ones.

Social and cultural dimensions: Unlike purely technical IT strategies, this document placed significant emphasis on cultural and value-based aspects of digital development — from protecting children in the information environment to developing digital literacy and maintaining traditional forms of knowledge dissemination alongside digital ones.

Amendment History

The Strategy for the Development of the Information Society for 2017-2030 has not been formally amended since its approval. It superseded the Strategy for the Development of the Information Society of 2008 (approved by the President of the Russian Federation on February 7, 2008, No. Pr-212), which was declared null and void.

Information Society Development Strategy until 2030