StrategEast Founder and President Anatoly Motkin in his op-ed for the Financial Times which was published on the 12th of July states: “Young people are eager to prosper in a world where borders and distance are less significant than ever. Now is the time for governments and the global tech sector to provide the framework and encouragement for them to work hard and drive real economic development across the post-Soviet region”. He says that his own experience gained in Belarus had showed him how significantly countries and economies can be transformed with the proper incentives.
In 2005, Belarus began implementing laws to boost its tech sector. And today, Belarus’s 124-acre Hi-Tech Park employs nearly 30,000 people and hit $1bn in revenues in 2017. Belarus has definitely learnt much from its neighbour Estonia, which is responsible for the invention of Skype software and has recently adopted e-voting and e-residency. The similar trends can be observed in Ukraine, Georgia and Uzbekistan.
According to Anatoly Motkin, the tech offers a future in which entrepreneurs can create for themselves, take more ownership of their lives, and reform citizen relationships with the state. The tech sector can help the region move from consumption to creation, a necessary transition in a digital world. But a particularly important point is that tech leaders themselves must play a role.
StrategEast Founder and President recommends three types of action that tech leaders should take:
- First, they should inspire, by sending leaders to the post-Soviet region. Young people in these countries need to be moved to take risks and innovate. A supply of relatable role models is vital. In spite of multiple regulatory and reputational challenges facing tech giants, the likes of Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and Jan Koum are akin to rock stars in the region;
- Second, they should educate. Local entrepreneurs need to understand how Silicon Valley operates and how it interacts with governments and citizens. Tech giants can offer training to help local officials and innovators understand best business practices, legal frameworks, and co-operation with authorities and regulators;
- Finally, they should connect, by organising programmes for young tech leaders and government officials that build relationships with one another and their counterparts in the US and western Europe.
“Everyone would benefit from an approach where governments step back, the private sector leans in and young people are given the inspiration and tools to crack on in the global economy”, – concludes Anatoly Motkin.
Read more: https://www.ft.com/content/a3aa31c4-85c9-11e8-a29d-73e3d454535d
