Director of the Internet Initiatives Development Fund (IIDF) Kirill Varlamov has proposed setting up an association to develop human capital. According to Varlamov, this would help to resolve the workforce problems faced by the Russian economy. Over the next 10 years, 5–6 million jobs will disappear in Russia, and the demands placed on a further 20 million workers are set to change dramatically. Data from the Russian Ministry of Education suggest that 70% of university graduates have jobs within their field of study, whereas data from employers place this figure at just 40%. This illustrates how massively out of sync the education market and demand for the education it provides are, Varlamov argues.

Information provided by the IIDF shows that the jobs market has 102,000 vacancies just for jobs relating to IT products and IT services. By contrast, data from various sources show that official university admission figures for these fields range between 28,000 and 46,000 students. According to Varlamov, the major problem with this discrepancy lies in the fact that the economy of the future is a digital one, in which the major resource will be human capital rather than oil or gas.

“Yesterday we heard that we have the potential, that we have the means. But we haven’t got anything right now. It’s time we heard the thunder and noticed the approaching storm. And let’s go ahead and do something about it”, he summed up.

Varlamov proposes implementing large-scale careers guidance programmes and additional training to provide professional skills. It is vital that there are close links between employers and the creators of human capital: companies, universities, and schools.