Over the last year the priority of the Business Council of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization was the total digitalization of all aspects of life. This was stated by the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation Sergei Katyrin at a meeting of the Board of the SCO Business Council, which took place on September 7 in a remote format.

The problem of digitalization of public administration and interaction between the state and the population should be addressed at the international level, the President of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry emphasized in his remarks. “Acceleration of the process of mutual recognition of electronic documents, development of interstate electronic exchange of documents for entrepreneurs - this is what business is waiting for today. Even the mutual recognition of the electronic digital signature on the scale of the SCO countries will produce a colossal effect and save billions,”- said Katyrin.

Business also needs tools to build mutual trust. In this regard, it is already achievable for entrepreneurs of our countries to create open interstate services for checking contractors, the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry noted.

Another topic, according to Katyrin, that requires interaction at the interstate level is the development of digital platforms, ecosystems and digital markets. It is already clear that this is the future, and since all these digital solutions work outside the borders of states, the problems of effectively protecting the interests of consumers and suppliers, issues of cybersecurity, protection of personal data and a whole range of others are becoming more and more urgent. In this regard, it is extremely important to develop a unified position in the field of cybersecurity and personal data protection, Katyrin said.

In his opinion, another important area that should remain in the attention of the SCO Business Council is cooperation in the field of transport and logistics. Katyrin stressed that the development of interregional cooperation within the SCO is also an area where it is necessary to more actively promote the development of business cooperation, to support major regional events held with the participation of the SCO countries. Katyrin noted the already traditional IT-forum in Khanty-Mansiysk, the Forum of small and medium-sized businesses in Ufa. “I would like it to be a live communication,” he stressed.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization includes India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Russia, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan. The next meeting of the Shanghai Group Business Council is scheduled for 2022 in Tashkent.

By Peter Cheremushkin, Chamber Press Office