The Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation – transformation options. Politological imagination

The resignation of the government which happened on January 15, 2020 inevitably generated a wave of analytics, speculation and just leisure talk concerning the changed structure of the cabinet, candidates for heads of federal agencies, possible reorganization of the ministries – on condition of their survival in the created model of executive power.

Did not avoid these discussions and Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications Russia. Especially as the head of the ministry Konstantin Noskov is called among the first candidates for leaving the government.

Главу министерства цифрового развития Konstantin Noskov call among the first candidates for leaving the government

Persistent rumors about liquidation or cardinal reorganization of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications circulate not the first month, as stated. in the circles close to a subject of discussion.

Major versions two:

• the section of the present Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications on 2-3 federal agencies with narrower specialization of each of them;
• complete of liquidation of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications with transfer of blocks of its powers on accessory to other ministries (possible "successors" - the Ministry of Economic Development, Minpromtorg, the Ministry of Finance and even security officers).

Lower in a format of politological imagination several hypothetical options of development of the situation, extreme for the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications, caused by resignation of the government and suddenly opened "window of opportunities" for reformers of destructive sense will be considered.

The background is Ministry of eclecticism

For the serious attitude towards the first of two above-named versions (the section of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications with formation of new departments) there are quite serious reasons from which main thing – very eclectic structure of functions and powers of the ministry which developed for nearly three decades under the influence of different political factors.

Still in the mid-nineties the XX century the department which was historically responsible for a classical triad of communication "mail-phone-telegraph" received additional powers on development and control of processes of the state informatization and a telecom in all its completeness:

• For the first time the word "informatization" in the name of department appeared in 1997. However, at the same time department turned for a while from the ministry into the State Committee - on March 17, 1997 was transformed by the Decree of the Russian President No. 249 of Ministry of Communications of Russia to the State committee of the Russian Federation on communication and informatization (State Committee on Communications of Russia);
• On May 25, 1999 by the Decree of the Russian President No. 651 of the State Committee on Communications of Russia it was transformed to the State committee of the Russian Federation on telecommunications (Gostelekom of Russia);
• On November 12, 1999 Gostelekom of Russia was transformed by the Decree of the Russian President No. 1487 to the Ministry of the Russian Federation of communication and informatization (Ministry of Communications of Russia).

In 2004 the Ministry of Communications of Russia (not in the first and, probably, not last time in the history) was abolished. On March 9, 2004 according to the Decree of the Russian President from No. 314 issues of communication and informatization were transferred to the Ministry of Transport and Communications of the Russian Federation. However the Ministry of Communications of Russia continued to function till May 20, 2004 when already Ministry of Transport and Communications of the Russian Federation was separated into 2 ministries - the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of information technologies and communications of the Russian Federation (the Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications of Russia). The Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications on the powers and functions became the legal successor of the liquidated Ministry of Communications of Russia. In terms of events of the next one and a half decades, it was, perhaps, the most logical name and the sphere of responsibility of department. Let's remind, Leonid Reiman – at him was the Minister of Communications for nearly 10 years (1999-2008) and thanks to it the terms "informatization" and "information technologies" appeared in the name of department.

At the following minister, Igor Shchegolev, in the name of the ministry the words "information technologies" disappeared, and instead of them "mass communications" appeared. Mass communications are not about a telecom, it about control and supervision over all printed and electronic media at all. The renamed and slightly reorganized Shchegolev's ministry received this function as a result of transfer to it in jurisdiction (through newly created federal service – Roskomnadzor) appropriate authority from Federal service on supervision in the field of mass communications, communication and protection of cultural heritage (Rossvyazyokhrankultura).

Transfer of "mass communications" in new renamed the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications happened not accidentally – the minister Shchegolev was a native of the Russian President Administration where in the beginning directed the press service, and then for more than 7 years (2001-2008) held a position of the head of the protocol. So mass communications were much closer to it (to the journalist by training), than information technologies. Nevertheless, for those 4 years (2008-2012) during which Igor Shchegolev was a minister, in the direction of state informatization, according to many experts he managed to make more than both the predecessor, and two following successors. By the way, Shchegolev, being already the Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation, in the spring of 2017 took the most active part in development of the first edition of the Digital Economy of the Russian Federation program - together with Andrey Belousov he is called one of "fathers" of digital economy. So, "digital development" in present (whether for a long time?) the name of the ministry – to some extent, too Shchegolev's merit.

One of the main problems of today's Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications is that practically in one of officially stated spheres of the powers the ministry is not the unconditional regulator and the indisputable arbitrator (even if regulatory powers are registered in the NPA of federal level). In issues of communication and a telecom practically all solutions should be approved with security officers (both military, and security services), in the Digital Economy national program - the diarchy together with Ministry of Economics which developed since the FTP Electronic Russia, in mass communications the tone is very often set too by "men in uniform".

Therefore the option of separation of the existing department on two (and it is even better – on three), with transfer to each of them of the functions and powers concentrated around each of the main spheres of responsibility of the ministry is represented quite logical.

Especially as it would be rather simple to be made when the government resigned and theoretically there are no obstacles for making changes in structure of again created government.

"Net Mintsifra"

Selection from the present Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of other compact department of federal level which would be responsible only for a subject of state informatization and that component of the Digital Economy national program which belongs to state informatization – first of all, the federal project "Digital State Administration" and a number of tasks from other drafts of the national program could become the simplest – both organizationally, and economically, and politically –.

In today's Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications there is already almost ready organizational and regular structure for "net Mintsifra". These are, first of all, two departments which are supervised the deputy minister Evgenia Kislyakova (who is the administrator of the Digital Economy national project) – Department of coordination and projects implementation on digital economy (the department director – M. Nasibulin) and Development department of architecture and coordination of informatization (the department director – V. Slyshkin). Are drawn towards virtual structure of the changed digital ministry also Department of projects of digital transformation (the department director – O. Kachanov) and Development department of the digital state (the department director – A. Gorobtsov).

Four departments – already quite decent "skeleton" for the updated ministry. But 4 departments are even not the semi-ministry, but a quarter ministry (in structure of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications for January 15, 2020 15 departments, however, 3 of them are the classical administrative device – legal department, department of organizational development and department of economy and finance).

But … This hypothesis could have a certain right to life exactly and only at a favorable environment for the ministry and the minister. And this environment opposite, and a question of department of a "digital" part of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications can be unrolled absolutely in other direction – all functions and powers of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications on "digit" can depart to "the bewitched partner" on behalf of the Ministry of Economic Development.

Rostsifrovization

Option of peculiar "Mintsifry-layt" is creation not of the ministry, and federal agency, for example, of certain Rostsifrovization. In this case, of course, the created structure will have no regulatory powers (in the system of the government of the Russian Federation regulators are, as a rule, the ministries), but the completeness of executive power in accurately designated field of activity will remain. Loss of regulatory powers is represented not too critical for Rostsifrovization since and at the existing ministry these functions are strongly limited to need of numerous approvals of law enforcement agencies.

The same 4 departments of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications which are called higher could migrate in the structure of Rostsifrovization.

Could be given to the newly created agency as well those divisions of ANO Russian Government Analytical Centre which perform functions of project office of the Digital Economy national program and also again created divisions the subveda of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of Federal State Budgetary Institution TsEKI which perform functions of departmental directorate of the national program. Similar consolidation could simplify significantly a management system for the Digital Economy national program, having removed from it two structural elements at once, project communications from all other elements of a system reach for each of which.

And besides – as a part of Rostsifrovization finding of all block of divisions of the Ministry of Economic Development which are engaged in a subject of "Digital economy" looks more logical.

Minekonomtsifra

One of opposite to the options of "net Mintsifra" considered above and Rostsifrovization is the option which is called Minekonomtsifra. As it is easy to guess, it is about complete withdrawal from maintaining the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the blocks responsible for state informatization and "Digital economy", and transfer of these blocks to the reformed Ministry of Economic Development – the Ministry of economic and digital development of the Russian Federation.

Why it in principle is possible and why such option has the right to life? Yes just because those volumes of historical experience, methodologies, knowledge and qualifications which are required for interdepartmental coordination and support of programs of type and scale of "Digital economy" (read – a background of responsible officials), it appears, are available not only the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications, but also the Ministry of Economic Development (and at the last, perhaps, even more). Also there are they in economic department thanks to that combination of circumstances that for nearly two decades (including even from start of the FTP "Electronic Russia 2002-2010"), the Ministry of Economic Development which too was in time to change few times the name had a direct bearing on all programs of state informatization – and it was level or the full-fledged collaborator of the program (as earlier in a case with Electronic Russia and here – with "Digital economy"), or the level of the owner of the state program parallel and the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications which is closely coordinated with the main state program (so was during 2011-2018 when the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications was the only executive in charge of the Information Society state program, but coordinated it with the "Economic Development and the Innovation Economy" state program for which the Ministry of Economic Development is responsible).

Since the moment of an adoption still of the first edition of the Digital Economy program between two executives in charge of this program there is peculiar "a pulling of a blanket on itself" (though, would be to call this process a turn of financial flows more precisely). Despite accurately two channel spheres of responsibility on federal projects, each of "bewitched partners" wishes to appropriate for himself a part of budgets which are managed by his vis-a-vis. Such attempt took place, for example, in the summer of 2018 when after renaming and expansion of functions of department in connection with the beginning of implementation of the Digital Economy national program, the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications tried to transfer "imperceptibly" to the area of responsibility one of two projects of "Digital economy" for which the Ministry of Economic Development initially was responsible – for this purpose corresponding "tab" was added to the draft resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation on making changes in Regulations on the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications. But then focus was not successful – "tab" was detected at interdepartmental approval of the project.

Recently history repeated, but already in mirror option and without conspirology. In September, 2019 responsibility for development of the federal project "Artificial intelligence" was transferred by the solution of the Deputy Prime Minister Maxim Akimov from the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications to the Ministry of Economic Development, and quite recently, at the end of 2019 the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications proposed to return it a part of coordination powers on a fedproyekta since considers that it is necessary to transfer spheres of providing a financial support to customers and developers of solutions based on AI to its area of responsibility and also increase in availability and quality of the data necessary for development ^[1].

The first law of materialistic dialectics - the unity and conflict of opposites – fully shows the action in long-term relationship of two departments. And, considering duration of this unity and fight, it is quite possible to expect that also the second dialectic law – transition of quantity to quality will work. Which just can be also expressed in Minekonomtsifra's creation.

Minpromsvyazyimportozameshcheniye

One more option of reorganization with possible loss of identity of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications already for a long time circulates in okoloministersky circles – it is neither more nor less, as about consolidation of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications with a "industrial" part of Minpromtorg (which previously should be separated into "industry" and "trade") in superdepartment which can receive the name like Minpromsvyaz. Though, it is option the majority hearing about it estimate as absolutely unrealistic, certain reasons nevertheless are available for not called authors of this idea. The main reason is an import substitution – are engaged in it also the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications (regarding the Russian software), and Minpromtorg (according to rather wide range of the industrial output including including, and telecommunication equipment without which it is impossible to implement many tasks in projects of "Digital economy".

Considering that the existing emphasis on import substitution in national projects even more was enhanced in the message of the President which was heard on January 15, 2020, the probability of creation of such special ministry nonzero – though, and very close to zero.

Final comments

Everything written above is as it was told right at the beginning, no more, than imagination of the author on the set subject. It is possible that already by the time of the publication of this material or one or two days later there will be reliable news destroying all speculative constructions built in the text.

Most likely, no reorganization or disbandment of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications will happen in the nearest future – and just in several days the candidate for a post of the minister who will undergo all necessary procedures of an approval/statement and will start fulfillment of duties of the minister in existing (and actually eclectic) to structure of the ministry will be called.

Reorganization of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications will not happen for one obvious reason – such changes should prepare strongly in advance, and possible effects and risks of cardinal reorganization should be predicted and miscalculate. By the time of so suddenly happened resignation of the government the model of fate of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications (if it was also studied somewhere far from public) still was definitely not ready.

But, when and if study of such model begins or will be resumed, it is possible that the ideas introduced in this note will be reasonably useful for those specialists and heads who will be engaged in conceptual study, planning and implementation of reform of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications.

Notes