Accounts Chamber: Rosstat spent ₽9 billion on 400 thousand unnecessary tablets

2025: Accounts Chamber: Spending on unnecessary tablets amounted to ₽9 billion per 400 thousand.

The Accounts Chamber revealed the facts of ineffective spending of budget funds as part of the procurement of equipment by Rosstat. This became known at the end of January 2025. According to the auditors' report, of the 400 thousand tablets purchased in the amount of ₽9 billion, only 18 thousand were used for their intended purpose, and the rest of the devices continue to be stored in warehouses. Rosstat explains that part of the equipment has been transferred to other state structures, including new regions, as well as the Belgorod and Kursk regions.

According to Izvestia, the purchase of tablets was carried out from 2011 to 2020. in preparation for the All-Russian Population Census. During this period, Rosstat acquired 392 thousand devices, but as of September 2024, most of them remained unpacked in warehouses. The auditors found that an additional 43 thousand tablets were transferred to other departments, but even taking into account this data, more than 300 thousand gadgets did not find practical use.

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Фото: Freepik

The press service of Rosstat explained that some of the tablets running on the Aurora operating system were used during the 2020 census and were subsequently transferred to various government agencies. The representative of the department clarified that the devices are planned to be used to control electronic hunting tickets in accordance with the changes in legislation that entered into force on January 1, 2025. In addition, tablets are sent to educational and social institutions, as well as to the authorities of new regions.

According to the report of the Accounts Chamber, most of the devices were purchased from Rostelecom in 2020. However, their software is solely for census-related tasks. Tablets can be used in other areas only when the system is updated, which requires additional costs. Auditors indicate that due to the rapid obsolescence of technology, it no longer meets modern requirements, which complicates its adaptation for the needs of government agencies.

In 2016, Rosstat purchased 20 thousand tablets worth ₽653 million, but by 2024 they became unusable due to the outdated version operating system Android 4.0 and insufficient memory.^[1]

2021

Providing Rostelecom with round-the-clock technical support for the All-Russian Population Census

From October 15 to November 14, 2021, the All-Russian Population Census (VPN) is held, whose digital partner is Rostelecom. This was announced on October 15, 2021 by Rostelecom. As part of state contracts with Rosstat, the company equipped census takers with tablet computers, modernized the automated VPN system, provided infrastructure for the operation of the situation center, and organized the work of the hotline. Rostelecom also provides round-the-clock technical support for the entire digital infrastructure during the census and data processing.

Rostelecom has supplied 360 thousand tablet computers to the territorial state statistics bodies and provides mobile communications services for their work. In accordance with the instructions and decisions of the President and the Government of Russia, domestic equipment and technologies are used in the census. Tablet computers were manufactured by Aquarius and Byte Erg at five production sites in Moscow, Kostroma, Krasnoslobodsk, Shuya and Kaliningrad. The project allowed domestic companies to establish a full production cycle for the production of tablets on an industrial scale.

The tablets run on the Russian mobile operating system Aurora, which is being developed by Rostelecom's subsidiary, Open Mobile Platform. A certified infrastructure has been deployed to centrally manage all tablets to ensure information security and the safety of the collected data.

mobile application An electronic census form for entering data is available in the scribe, as well as a mapping service that makes it easier to navigate the area. Automation of a number of collection functions is provided, information which significantly reduces the work time of the scribe. Built-in mechanisms for checking input information based on specified logic rules eliminate errors and typos. The application allows you to track the dynamics of the census online. Thanks to the centralized management infrastructure, in case of loss or compromise of the tablet, it can be remotely blocked and the data deleted.

In 2021, you can take part in the census remotely - on the portal of public services. Rostelecom (represented by a subsidiary of RT Labs) acts as a technical partner of the Ministry of Digital Development of Digital Industry of Russia for the operation and development of e-government infrastructure, including a single portal of state and municipal services. In the section of the All-Russian Population Census on the portal of public services, instructions on how to go through the procedure in an online format are posted in an accessible form.

Most of the primary census data (about 90%) is supposed to be collected immediately in digital format. This will increase their reliability and quality, as well as speed up the further processing and analysis of the collected information. At all stages of data collection and processing, information security is ensured, including depersonalization of information at the initial stage.

The census hotline was created on the basis of Rostelecom Contact Center (a subsidiary of PJSC Rostelecom). More than 170 operators of the contact center underwent special training, a knowledge base was developed to answer questions from the population.

Start of the All-Russian population census in hard-to-reach areas of Yamal

On April 13, 2021, Rostelecom announced that the first stage of the All-Russian Population Census had started on the territory of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug). The work began with remote and inaccessible territories in the Ural, Purovsky, Tazovsky, Shuryshkar and Yamal regions of the Arctic region. In a month, census takers will visit 52 settlements, which can only be reached by specialized all-terrain vehicles. In 2021, the census will be held for the first time in digital format using domestic equipment and technologies provided by Rostelecom.

"The All-Russian population census of 2021 presents a new format for collecting primary data - digital. The main stage of work with residents will take place in the fall, but in remote and hard-to-reach areas, the census traditionally begins several months earlier. Already in April 2021, census takers will visit fifty villages of Priuralsky, Purovsky, Tazovsky, Shuryshkarsky and Yamal districts, in August - in seven settlements of Krasnoselkupsky and Shuryshkarsky districts, in September the census will be held in six more nearby villages, and the process will be completed closer to December in the Nadymsky district. There are three remote settlements, "said Alexander Nekrasov, Deputy Director of the Department of Economics of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.

The All-Russian population census is still the only reliable source data on the most important socio-demographic indicators, including the size and composition of the population, gender and age characteristics, information migration flows and living conditions in private households, as well as much more. This will allow you to plan social policy states and make informed decisions to improve life. Everything information collected during the census will be available in the form of a microdata base, - commented the deputy head Rosstat Pavel Smelov.

Census takers will collect primary data using. tablet computers Russia 360 thousand digital devices have been supplied to the territorial bodies of state statistics throughout. Several hundred of them will be involved in Yamal. In accordance with the instructions and decisions of the President the governments of the country , only Russian equipment and technologies are involved in the work. All tablets are equipped, the Aurora domestic mobile operating system (MOS) development of which is engaged in the subsidiary of Rostelecom - "." Open mobile platform Also, Rostelecom has deployed a certified infrastructure for centralized management of all tablets in order to ensure information security and preserve the collected data.

The use of digital devices with specialized software will improve the quality of the scribes and significantly speed up the processing of the information received. The input validation mechanisms built into the system will eliminate errors and typos. And the most important thing is that now the information received from the population is reliably protected. At all stages of the census, the security of the collected digital data is ensured, including their depersonalization at the initial stage. As of April 2021, in Yamal, 74 tablets, 78 census takers, 4 controllers, the same number of translators and 11 guides were involved in collecting data for the census, "said Alexander Oboltin, director of the Yamalo-Nenets branch of Rostelecom.

The mobile application for the scribe includes a mapping service and helps to navigate the area, as well as an electronic census form for entering data. The system allows you to control the number of rewritten in one location and track the dynamics of the entire process online.

The tablet comes with a charger, protective case, stylus, two memory cards and an external battery, which will provide battery life for several days.

2020: Start of production of domestic tablets for the All-Russian population census

On July 2, 2020, it became known that Aquarius Production Company LLC and Byte Erg LLC had begun production of tablets for the All-Russian Population Census under contracts with Rostelecom. The total production volume is 360 thousand devices with a pre-installed domestic mobile operating system "Aurora."

"Rostelecom" announced the start of production of domestic tablets for the All-Russian population census

As reported, on June 30, 2020, the ceremony of starting production the Russian of tablets for the census took place, in which Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Denis Manturov Minister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) Pavel Malkov Maksut Shadayev, head, senior vice president for technical infrastructure of PJSC Rostelecom, Alexey Sapunov general director, Open Mobile Platform LLC (OMP) Pavel Eiges heads of tablet manufacturers and others took part.

The state order will give an incentive to the development of domestic technologies and industries, including an electronic component base, the percentage of use of which cannot satisfy us as of July 2020. What is important to note - we agreed on the cooperation of ministries, combining the efforts of all interested parties - from developers to consumers. The Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia is responsible for the development and production of electronic products and telecommunications equipment. The Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of Russia, as part of the development of the digital economy, is for end consumers, the practical use of technology in government agencies, the social sphere, and business. Together, we can and must ensure an increase in the consumption of domestic products. By 2024, we expect to increase the share of domestic equipment to 20% in the field of auto components and to 40% in computing and telecommunications equipment. told Denis Manturov, head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia

After the census, tablets can be used to solve social problems. For teachers, the tablet is most convenient to show electronic educational content in the classroom, keep an electronic diary. Also, ambulance doctors and hospitals, traffic police officers can use them to organize their work. All those who participate in control activities, for whom it is important to quickly have access to databases. noted Russia Maksut Shadayev, head of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications

A digital population census will be held in 2021. We will experiment with big data technologies. Citizens will have the opportunity to pass the census on their own - through the portal of public services or, for example, in the MPSC. Scribes instead of the traditional paper sheet, which was previously filled manually, will have an electronic tablet. Digital tools will avoid errors when entering data or due to illegibility of handwriting. It will be possible to take stock of the census faster - most of the data will already be in digital form. Finally, there will be control over the actions of the scribes, including in order to ensure their own safety. added Pavel Malkov, head of Rosstat

"Rostelecom" in accordance with the instructions and decisions of the President of Russia and the Government of Russia was appointed digital partner of Rosstat in the preparation and conduct of the All-Russian population census. This census will become digital - it is planned that no more than 10% of the data will be collected on paper.

All scribes will be equipped with hardware and software complexes with the Aurora operating system (OS). The OS provides a secure trusted mobile environment for efficient and secure data collection and transmission that complies with legal and regulatory requirements.

Tablet for the All-Russian Population Census

The hardware and software complex includes a tablet with a 10.1-inch Full HD display, an external battery, which will provide autonomous operation for several days, as well as a charger, a protective case, a stylus and two memory cards. The tablets will be equipped with a mobile scribe application with an electronic census form and a built-in mapping service.

"Rostelecom" announced the start of production of domestic tablets for the All-Russian population census

The census can be passed remotely - on a single portal of public services (a special section will appear). It will also be possible to visit census plots, which will also be opened in multifunctional centers of public services ("My Documents").

Thus, most of the data of the All-Russian Population Census will be immediately collected in digital form. In addition to the section on the portal of public services and the supply of software and hardware systems, Rostelecom will also be engaged in the modernization of the internal IT system of Rosstat, designed to collect, store, process and analyze census data.

2019: Plan for the application of the Russian Aurora OS during the electronic population census

On December 5, 2019, information appeared that in October 2020 it is planned to hold the first electronic population census in Russia, in which digital technologies will be involved, which had not been used in such a responsible process before. Read more here.

In particular, if you have well-developed application software, the Russian mobile OS Aurora (formerly Sailfish Mobile OS RUS) can be used in such a large-scale project.

In 2018, a trial census using digital technologies was held. On the basis of the Russian software digital platform, the "Collection System" was created. data Server part of the system allows you to plan routes and work schedules of visiting employees, receive and store information received by them and transfer it for further processing to information subsystems. Rosstat For census takers, the "fields" provide for the use tablets mobile application of Aurora and Data Collection Systems with the installed Russian mobile operating system on. Optimum platform

Testing, workflows, and results of the trial census were considered successful. As a result, it was decided to use the Aurora OS for the 2020 All-Russian Census. The task of developing software and purchasing tablets was set for Rostelecom.

How the data from the tablets will be transferred to the situation center for processing has not yet been finally determined. Initially, it was assumed that the infrastructure of cellular networks would be used to transfer completed questionnaires and other data based on the results of the work of census takers. Specialized software in the absence of a cellular signal allows you to work offline all the necessary time. The processed information will arrive at the situation center when the connection appears. Thus, the "Data Collection System" created in 2018 simultaneously implements the concept of mobility and full-fledged work in remote areas, where problems with the transfer of data "from the fields" are possible^[2]

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