Felicitations on the Day of Russian Science by Alexander Sergeevich Sigov

20 years ago, on the Day of Russian Science, everyone who had any relation to science, felt painfully ashamed and bitter. These days are, fortunately, in the past. Now we do have achievements to be proud of.

The changes are indeed enormous: both with regard to the amount of funding, and the attitude of the Government to scientists, to our ideas and developments. But one of the main sorrows of the Russian science is that only the budget remains the single source of its financing. There are two aspects to it: on the one hand, it is not limitless, and “Bolivar cannot carry double”; still the more so, if we speak of science, the defense complex, the social sphere, and all the rest. On the other hand, the state is holding back the creation of incentive mechanisms for business, while such mechanism should take on the lion’s share of spendings on science.

The Year of Science and Technology announced by the President of the Russian Federation is a good driver to solve many problems in 2021: introduce new instruments for business investment in science, de-bureaucratize science and offer new opportunities for our scientists.

Russian science, despite all the difficulties of growth, is a global brand, and our success in creating a vaccine against coronavirus has brilliantly demonstrated this to everyone. We are able to strike the minds of the world with scientific discoveries in all fields of knowledge, it is necessary that not only the government, but also those in public service be on the side of science. 

Congratulations on our holiday, dear colleagues!