12 On the Formation of High-Quality Human Capital in the Context of Digitalization of the Russian Economy* Victor I. Barhatov 1, Yuner Sh. Kapkaev 1 [0000-0003-2816-1992] and Ilya A. Nurmukhametov 1 [0000-0001-8603-7901] 1 Chelyabinsk State University, Chelyabinsk, Russia 2zam@csu.ru 389058323808@mail.ru Abstract. The object of research in the article is human capital, as well as the influence of the federal target program “Electronic Russia” on the regional policy in the development of regional information and innovation infrastructure. The study will analyze the effectiveness of public administration in stimulating the development of the digital economy, mass dissemination of information and communication technologies, ensuring the rights of citizens to free access to in- formation about the activities of state bodies, and the process of forming high- quality human capital. Understanding the nature of the objects under study will make it possible to evaluate the effectiveness of the processes of modernization of the regional infrastructure, evaluate the effectiveness of existing tools and use the results of the study to develop new approaches to solving infrastructure prob- lems at the regional and state levels. The study aims to identify key areas in the development of information and innovation infrastructure, contributing to im- proving the quality of human capital. According to the results of the study, we need to solve the tasks or argue the existence of factors that impede the achieve- ment of results. Keywords: human capital, quality of human capital, digitalization, information, and innovation infrastructure of the region. 1 Introduction The formation of human capital as an object of research is actualized for a long time. Interest in this economic asset has transformed for a long time. Adam Smith, K. Marx, and many other authoritative economists and philosophers wrote about this. Different approaches have been proposed. T. Schulz [1] made a significant contribution to the introduction of a theoretical basis for such a concept as human capital at the initial stage. It was thanks to his scientific research that the rethinking and popularization of this economic tool occurred. Schultz defined the role of human capital as a fundamental * Copyright 2021 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). 13 element of the industrial, and then the post-industrial economy. The capacious concept of "human capital" is multi-layered. At the micro-level, G. Becker discovered the con- cept of human capital. He presented “human capital as a body of knowledge, skills, and abilities” [2]. The costs of education and training Becker sees as an investment in the development of human capital. First, he estimated the economic efficiency of education directly for the person himself. He defined the difference in income between a person with higher education (hi-e) and a poorly educated worker as a potential difference in income [3]. “The changing role of human capital is realized through the expansion of its structure and functions, the transformation from the item of expenditure to the main factor of industrial and social development. The basis of the new economy is the accumulated human capital, mainly affecting the social sphere and the economic potential of modern society" [1]. It is impossible not to note the opinion of A. Smith that the quality of life of “every nation” is determined by two different conditions: firstly, art, skill, and ingenuity, with which, in general, his work applies, and, secondly, the relationship between the number of those who are engaged in useful work, and the number of those who are not engaged in them. Whatever the soil, climate, or size of a particular people’s territory, the abun- dance or shortage of its annual supply will always depend on these two conditions. "[4] The very understanding of the role of human capital has undergone dramatic changes. The expansion of structural and functional potential expanded understanding of the spectrum of its influence on the development paradigm of the entire structure of society on a civilizational scale led to a new perception of countries and the world community. Besides, at this stage, the emergence of new economic, social, and political, postmodern realities, human capital occupied the leading place in the national wealth and in the total productive capital of developed countries, which is about 80% [1]. The main tasks of studying the article, the authors see: 1. to identify the dependence of human capital on the level of development of infor- mation and innovation infrastructure in the region; 2. determining the relationship between the strengthening of state support for infra- structure development and human capital; 3. the search for optimal approaches to the development of regional infrastructure and the substantiation of the key role of the state in the formation of human capital. As the main tasks in the article: 1. the degree of influence of infrastructure directions and on various parameters of hu- man capital is analyzed; 2. analyzes the role of the state in the development of regional infrastructure and the impact of human capital on the economic and social potential of regional develop- ment and its dynamics. In the future, human capital will be able to influence the socio-economic climate of countries that invest in the development of regional infrastructure. In the philosophical sense, modernization and dynamic development of the state are systemic changes in the 14 physical, institutional, organizational, intangible (intellectual), financial and other fac- tors of its functioning. It is safe to say that they ultimately lead to a positive economic, social, political, institutional, environmental, infrastructural result [1]. 2 Retrospective V. Patti turned to the possibility of monetary assessment of the productive properties of man in the seventeenth century. “He believed that the wealth of society depends on the nature of busy people and their ability to work. In one form or another, the idea of human capital was considered in the works of A. Smith, D. Ricardo, A. Marshall, K. Marx, F. Engels, J. Mill, L. Walras, J. B. Clark, and other scientists [3]. However, it was noted that the efficiency of the use of physical or financial assets is determined by the qualifications, competence, and health of people. This conclusion led to the formulation of the concept of human capital in the 1960s (Becker 1964). The theory of human capital has become an important element of an in-depth analysis aimed at assessing the role that the quality of the human factor plays in economic processes. According to the study, the highest levels of human capital are characteristic of the richest regions in Western Europe, while the lowest levels are observed in the poorest countries that have become EU members only recently, and in countries in southern Europe, including Greece. [5]. Therefore, A. Smith (2007) wrote that the increase in labor productivity depends primarily on the dexterity and skills of the worker, that the acquired and useful abilities of a person become part of the wealth of society [6]. According to J. Mill (1980), the “wealth of the country” category may include the skill, energy, and perseverance of workers. Karl Marx believed that more labor that is skilled is restored at regular inter- vals at relatively higher prices [3]. Thanks to the work of supporters of the "Chicago school", such as B. Weisbrod, T. Schulz, G. Becker, J. Mintzer, in the second half of the 20th century, the concept of human capital was formulated and formulated into a relatively comprehensive theory. They used in their work the principles and structural elements of the neoclassical school concerning social institutions such as education, health care, and other areas. In this paper, we are interested in information and innovation infrastructure, and this, in turn, is strongly associated with an affordable and high-quality education. It should be noted here that the EU is developing its cohesion policy with the main goal of reducing dif- ferences in regional development. The success of a policy is largely determined by the identification of factors contributing to such discrepancies. Human capital is one of the key factors for economic success [7]. Thus, Norway is gradually overcoming the Dutch disease through expanded reproduction of human capital. On the other hand, hydrocar- bon production may remain a driver of economic growth in Russia. [6]. For G. Becker, this was a set of human skills, knowledge, and skills [3]. According to the definition of T. Schulz, human capital is the valuable qualities of a person, which can be strengthened by appropriate investments [3]. Nevertheless, T. Schulz and G. Becker paid more attention to explaining and supporting the idea of the fair role of human resources in creating an aggregate social product. In later works, there is no 15 consensus on the definition and content of the concept of “human capital”, which can be explained by the complexity and universality of this phenomenon. For example, the Economic Dictionary of Penguins defines human capital as the skills, knowledge, and abilities of a person that allow him to earn income. In the future, this definition has been expanded to include intangible effects: human capital is the knowledge, competencies, and properties embodied in people who contribute to the creation of personal, social, and economic well-being [3, 8]. How the perception of the term Human Capital has changed from a historical perspective is demonstrated in this flowchart in Figure 1. Fig. 1. The term “human capital” has changed from a historical perspective. 3 Education, knowledge, information, and digitalization are components of the quality of life Access to education, knowledge, and informatization are the most sought-after areas in modern society. They directly determine the quality and direction in the formation and development of human capital. Growth and interregional migration of human capital are indirectly dependent on the level of development of the information and innovation infrastructure, as they are an integral component of the quality of life. Evaluation of the quality of life in the region allows us to assess the positive and negative processes in these areas, to coordinate inter-agency cooperation aimed at improving the conditions affecting it. The rating system allows evaluating inter-regional differences in the field of increasing the level of digitalization and informatization in the region, and, conse- quently, the quality of life. What is their value and how to measure it? Many of the indicators characterizing the level of development of information and innovation infra- structure in different regions of the Russian Federation, as before, differ significantly. To determine it in the regions and assess existing imbalances in this area, research is conducted every year, and ratings of the development of information and innovation 16 infrastructure are compiled based on objective indicators. And not least in this is the development of infrastructures in each region. For assessing the quality of life and ranking, the source of information is data ob- tained from the following sources: Rosstat, Ministry of Health of Russia, Ministry of Finance of Russia, Central Bank of the Russian Federation, and other open sources. Data collection is carried out on 72 indicators, which are grouped into 11 groups, which characterize all the main aspects and living conditions in the region, from the level of economic development and income to the level of providing the population with vari- ous types of services and climatic conditions in the region of residence, but we are a primarily interested level of development of information and innovation infrastructure. Groups in which ratings are combined: 1. Social and demographic climate, 2. The level and accessibility of education of the population, 3. Provision of information infrastructure facilities, 4. The level of innovative development, 5. Digitalization of the economy, 6. The labor market. Objectively, this system allows you to track the dynamics of processes occurring in the region and affecting the formation and quality of human capital. The following sum- mary table shows how interrelated these indicators are and how individual they are in Table 1 [9]. 4 Human capital Today several economic schools relate differently to the concept of human capital. Our task is to try to formulate the most complete definition of human capital, assess its capabilities and development prospects. So, as Becker said: “Parents then invest more in children when they expect more support from them, manipulating the preferences of their children, but this benefits both children and parents. In the end, we get a positive result from the mercenary parental principle. This shows us that even if children are altruistic concerning their selfish parents, they will still invest in the human capital of their children since this will be beneficial for them in the future” [12]. This principle works in the relationship between the state and the citizen. The uneven development of social infrastructure in the region generates internal migration. People leave the villages lagging behind the growth rates in the quality of education, informatization, digitaliza- tion, labor market volumes in search of better conditions. Moreover, they migrate to more comfortable and developed settlements and cities. As an example, consider the internal migration diagram in the Chelyabinsk region in Figure 2. 17 Table 1. Increase (decrease) in human capital in the regions of Russia, depending on the devel- opment of infrastructures. The rating Dis- score in Natural Migration General The subject of tance the Rating January January dynamics dynamics dynamics the Russian Fed- № from the is 2017 2016 2017 of growth of growth of growth eration, which capital (Min.-1 / (people)2 (people)2 / abbr. / abbr. / abbr. includes the city (km) Max.- (people)2 (people)2 (people) 100)1 - Moscow - 76.92 12 330 126 12 380 664 21 486 29 052 50 538 1 Moscow region - 70,55 7 318 647 7 423 470 1 082 103 741 104 823 - Saint Petersburg 714 75.88 5 225 690 5 281 579 11 180 44 709 55 889 Leningrad re- 2 730 56,61 1 778 857 1 791 916 - 8 600 21 659 13 059 gion Novosibirsk re- 3 3320 49.11 2 762 237 2 779 555 2 034 15 284 17 318 gion Sverdlovsk re- 4 2150 56.80 4 330 006 4 329 341 - 991 326 - 665 gion Nizhny Novgo- 5 506 55.50 3 260 267 3 247 713 - 11 420 -1 134 - 12 554 rod Region Republic of Ta- 6 812 65.59 3 868 730 3 885 253 10 643 5 880 16 523 tarstan Chelyabinsk re- 7 1776 52.19 3 500 716 3 502 323 - 1 068 2 675 1 607 gion 8 Omsk Region 2703 42.53 1 978 466 1 972 682 158 - 5 942 - 5 784 9 Samara Region 1054 52.81 3 205 975 3 203 679 - 4 277 1 981 - 2 296 10 Rostov region 1074 52.91 4 236 000 4 231 355 - 9 680 5 035 - 4 645 Rep. Bashkorto- 11 1300 50.53 4 071 064 4 066 972 3 298 - 7 390 - 4 092 stan Krasnoyarsk re- 12 4141 46.15 2 866 490 2 875 301 3 983 4 828 8 811 gion 13 Perm Region 1442 45.26 2 634 409 2 632 097 889 - 3 201 - 2 312 14 Voronezh region 514 61.21 2 333 477 2 335 408 - 10 615 12 546 1 931 15 Volgograd region 969 40.22 2 545 937 2 535 202 - 6 282 - 4 453 - 10 735 … 26 Primorsky region 9 129 44,19 1 929 008 1 923 116 - 2 683 - 3 209 - 5 892 (Source: 1RIA rating, 2Rosstat) 18 Fig. 2. The results of the intraregional migration of the population over the past 20 years in the Chelyabinsk region. Thus, we can assess the impact of several areas of the regional infrastructure on the inflow, development, and quality of human capital. This, in turn, will allow us to assess the potential impact of human capital on the region's economy. Besides, these results underscore the importance of the demographic transition as a mechanism that underpins human capital growth observed in Western economies in the twentieth century [8]. Human capital is a set of system elements where each element can be claimed in a particular area of the economy. The elements of this system can be both innate (physi- ological characteristics, biological, etc.), or acquired through education, experience gained in practice. Factors determining human capital:  learning ability and ability to constantly perceive new information, (professional de- velopment or even retraining),  Level of vocational education and qualifications,  Work experience and professional skills  Social skills, ability to self-assess, leadership, moral qualities, education,  Intellectual and analytical skills,  Physical and physiological abilities and capabilities,  Intuition, including emotional intelligence,  Mental stability and reaction speed, including stress resistance. In other words, we can say that in economic terms it is a measure of qualifications, educational potential, and other individual characteristics that affect not only its pro- ductive potential but also its potential income [11]. Characteristics and their combinations are very individual, if not unique. However, 19 according to the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development), human capital is defined as skills and knowledge, competencies, and other personal qualities embodied in individuals or professional communities, acquired throughout life and used to produce goods, services, or various types of intellectual property in market conditions. However, you cannot ignore such a thing as an economically active age. “The economically active age is a well-defined criterion directly related to the time range of labor, professional, business, and creative activity of the economically active population” [10]. Speaking about the multi-layered concept of human capital, we cannot but touch upon such a concept as the core of a generation. “Figuratively speaking, this term can be compared with the heart of a person who radiates energy throughout the body. Namely, between 20 and 24 years of life, each person has the opportunity to choose any of the possible life paths. In the period from 25 to 29 years, there is a search for his way, from 30 to 34 years a person finds his way by making an informed choice, and from 35 to 39 years he moves intensively along the chosen path. For all subjects of the economic and social environment, this is important because at certain stages they, mak- ing the most important decisions, determine the direction of the future life. These are years of maximum concentration of energy and motivation, investments in the future, which for most people are mainly engaged in a career, family, and children ”[10]. For example, the aggregate human capital of an economy, determined by national educational standards, may be governed by several parameters relating to the needs of the labor market. You can predict such needs right now, and further informatization of the economy will lead to planning based on demand forecasts (or the need for one or another kind of specialists in the labor market) for a given level of quality. It can be assumed that this will reduce unemployment, adjust the number of places in a particular specialty in higher educational institutions and other professional educational institu- tions, and reduce social tensions. It is important to note that human capital occupies a central place among the indicators of the strategic efficiency of an enterprise, as it is a source of maximizing the company's profits and ensuring its sustainability and mini- mizing costs, as well as making recommendations for its development to modern en- terprises [8]. Very relevant can be considered the fact that in the Russian economic environment comes the understanding that a person with his education, qualifications [3], practical skills, and experience (in the broad sense of the word) is an important and at the same time underestimated economic resource. 5 Innovative infrastructure “The social function of the state is realized through the implementation of an appropri- ate social policy, which is defined as the purposeful activity of state authorities to achieve the main goals of the development of society at a certain stage” [10]. According to most researchers, the key factor affecting the quality and growth of human capital is the presence or absence of infrastructure, the degree of its development 20 in the regions. Where is the so-called cradle of human capital? According to the esti- mates of most economists who study human capital, the infrastructure of regions con- ducive to the growth and development of the quality of human capital is transport, the social sphere, engineering, information, and innovation. Consider the types of infra- structures and their elements displayed in the block diagram in Figure 3. INFRASTRUCTURE Social Engineering Transport Railways, seaports, coastal Informative Innovative Communication systems, Power, facilities, utilities technical and innovative Housing, education and infrastructure, airfields, information support of health facilities, sports Efficiency, scientific- decision-making facilities pipelines activities Fig. 3. Types of infrastructures involved in innovation processes. Based on the material studied, the experience and opinion of the scientific community, it is safe to say that several infrastructure systems play a fundamental role in stimulating growth and, most importantly, as human capital. The solution to the most important socio-economic problems of such infrastructure complexes requires systematization. Besides, their elements form an inseparable socio-economic ecosystem for the produc- tion of human capital, which has the competencies necessary for the development of the economic Meso-level [13]. Today, an innovative approach to the development of regional infrastructure, as a kind of unified system, is due to necessity. Its primary goal is to bring several regions out of the economic crisis and to confront the aggressive economic situation in the in- ternational market. It is important to understand that investments in the development, modernization, and innovations of the regional infrastructure will fill the labor market with demanded personnel, reduce unemployment, increase people's incomes and im- prove the quality of life. The concept of the socio-economic development of the Russian Federation is a historic milestone in the life of the country, meeting the objective need to introduce scientific advances and technologies into the economic component of a new democratic society. Overcoming the negative manifestations and consequences of 21 the global economic crisis, which also affected our state, is a restructuring of the econ- omy, investing in human capital, creating an environment for the innovation movement, raising education, science and technology, and health [14]. At this stage of economic and technological development, it is clear that the forms of economic use of human capital have changed significantly and acquired a completely different socio-economic status. Speaking of this, we mean innovative human capital, which has become an important element in the accumulation of economic and techno- logical innovation. As an example, consider a number of them: 1. In modern conditions of the functioning of the economic system, the working capac- ity of an employee is not opposed to the material factors of production used. Factors of production are not currently opposed to functioning capital; 2. Labor integration unites all sectors of the national economy, because of which a sin- gle socio-economic complex is formed, based on the integration of material, scien- tific, and educational resources. In such a complex, each worker acts as part of a single completely economically active population [15]. Today, the existing system of professional labor is formed into a single system of reproduction, which, in turn, is part of an economic system based on scientific, educational, and material produc- tion [12]. The importance, and most importantly, the relevance of this concept of socio-eco- nomic development lies in the formation of a system of parameters of personal growth of the individual, which will become the modern concept of socio-economic develop- ment of the economy. This stage of human capital development is an intermediate goal, and the social parameters of the evolution of personal processes are the ultimate goal of the development of the economy of Russian society [15]. Thus, summing up the above arguments, we can say that the principles of the theory of innovative develop- ment are the basis of sustainable human development based on the knowledge economy and innovation. In the new socio-economic conditions, special human potential be- comes extremely necessary, since it must not only have a high level of biological and intellectual-educational potential but also be able to constantly improve and develop its information-material environment. 6 Digitalization in Russia According to the latest data from the Center for Financial Innovations and Non-Cash Economy of the Moscow School of Management Skolkovo, in the first half of 2018, on a 100-point scale, the interval of indicators of the Digital Russia Index narrowed and ranged from 37,2 to 75,14 points, whereas 2017 this interval was 26,06–70,01. This result indicates a reduction in the gap between the leading and closing regions of the Russian Federation. According to the results of analytics in 2018, the top ten leading regions included Moscow, the Republic of Tatarstan, St. Petersburg, the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area (Ugra), the Tyumen Region, the YNAO, the Moscow Region, the Republic of 22 Bashkortostan, the Leningrad Region, the Chelyabinsk Region. Rating closes Sevasto- pol, Pskov region, the Republic of Adygea (Adygea), the Republic of North Ossetia- Alania, the Chukotka Autonomous Region, the Republic of Kalmykia, the Karachay- Cherkess Republic, the Republic of Tyva, the Republic of Ingushetia, the Jewish Au- tonomous Region. The average median value of the index in the first half of 2018 was 56,22 points, whereas in 2017 this value was 45,57 points [16]. In tabular terms by federal regions, it looks like Table 2. Table 2. The results of the study at the level of federal districts. position Federal District 2018 2017 Changes in 2018 relative to 2017 % position +/- % position +/- 1 Ural 68,34 57,17 19,54% 1 0 2 When the Volga 62,65 46,93 33,50% 4 2 3 Central 62,24 50,05 24,36% 3 0 4 Northwestern 62,02 50,90 21,85% 2 -2 5 Siberian 56,00 41,91 33,62% 7 2 6 Far Eastern 54,66 44,20 23,67% 5 -1 7 Southern 53,88 43,06 25,13% 6 -1 8 North Caucasus 45,36 33,37 35,93% 8 0 It is especially necessary to note such regions as the Republic of Dagestan, Kostroma region, Chechen Republic, Chukotka Autonomous Region, Ryazan, Tver, Bryansk, and Oryol regions. Their growth rates in the first half of 2018 were 61,1%, while the average growth rate in the country is 26,4% [16]. 7 Methodology The author's methodology of the presented rating deserves special attention. It takes into account quantitative indicators and expert assessment, based, according to the au- thors, on the analysis of metadata reflecting the processes of digitization of regions. The Digital Russia Index reflects the existence and success of initiatives related to digitalization at the regional level. If an initiative has concrete actions (for example, to create infrastructure), does not contradict the state's strategic view, and has positive socio-economic and business effects, it gets 100 points. The index is based on events that are related to the process of digitization of regions, as reflected in official open sources. The digitalization process is evaluated not only in terms of achieving goals but also in terms of its publicity. The Digital Russia Index assesses this process based on public references in open sources, taking into account the credibility, citation, and to- nality of events. 23 Each event is assigned to one of the seven key components or sub-indices: 1. Regulatory and administrative measures; 2. Human capital (personnel) and training programs; 3. Research competencies and technological background; 4. Information infrastructure; 5. Information security; 6. Economic indicators; 7. Social effects. Sub-indices, in turn, are evaluated through sub-factors, which in this study are events, facts, and other information obtained from open sources. An expert assessment for each fact is set based on formalized criteria, which can be aggregated into three key blocks: 1. Compliance with regulatory documents and state strategy in the field of digitaliza- tion. 2. The tangibility of the event, that is, the presence of specific steps, actions, processes. 3. Socio-economic, financial, and business effects of the above fact [16]. 8 Trends and economic goals of digitalization in Russia A high level of development and quality of human capital is necessary for the active implementation of institutional reforms, state modernization, technological moderniza- tion of production, and modernization of the economy itself. How to provide it? We assess the nature of constancy and dynamic complementarity between the two compo- nents of human capital: genetic potential and cognition [17]. Thus, a high level of development and quality of human capital in a state with a dynamically developing economy makes it possible to provide access to stable growth of economic indicators, improvement of the level and quality of life. Human capital is the main generator of the development of the potential of regions, and, consequently, of stable growth of the economies of developing countries. However, what can serve as the basis for the formation of the human capital of the required level of quality? Human capital is the source for the formation of a unified personnel corps capable of ensuring the growth of labor productivity and ensuring the integration of all available resources - the formation of a socio-economic system on an innovative basis [18]. The task of preserving and developing human capital is of strategic importance. According to A. Markov’s just remark: “... human capital, by its nature, its economic origin and repro- duction characteristics, is in the sphere of natural interaction of the state, business, in- dividual and society as a whole” [19]. Thus, it is possible to estimate a specific world experience of economic growth, for example, in China. It is important to say about 24 investing in human capital in China and its links with China’s participation in the global economy. The Cultural Revolution has largely destroyed education in China, especially higher education. Data from the early sixties and seventies show that very few people were in school. Only when the government began to finance more education and infor- mation infrastructure, China began to play a significant role in the global economy [14]. What are the trends of the digitalization of subjects of the Russian Federation? The study allowed identifying two groups of trends reflecting the development of the digital economy in Russia for subjects of the Russian Federation, at the state and business level. The authors identified a special interest in the digitization of public services to the identified “state” trends. Leadership in publications here has a federal portal for state services and regional portals for state services of constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The second important trend, according to the authors of the study, was the motivation of private businesses to develop innovative technologies. Significantly increased the amount of data on the creation of "Smart Cities" (smart-cities). The study also made it possible to single out a special interest in this topic in such cities as Moscow, St. Pe- tersburg, Kazan, Yekaterinburg, Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk, Ufa, Sochi, Perm, and Ros- tov-on-Don. The socio-economic effect of the use and development of digital technol- ogies in creating the “Smart City” is, according to open sources, mainly in increasing the range of electronic public services and reducing the level of digital inequality. Res- idents are actively involved in the management of urban development through portals for the interaction of the population with the government, such as, for example, Active Citizen, Dobrodel, Solve Together, and others. What is the federal view on the digital future of the Russian regions? The introduc- tion of digitalization for "Smart Cities" is planned to be implemented with the help of large companies specializing in working with information and telecommunications sec- tors of the economy in the regions. Thanks to the work of federal and regional legislative bodies, the number of legal acts on digitalization, which are practical with planned financial and technological re- sults, has significantly increased. First of all, we are talking about the creation and op- eration of core competency centers, territories of advanced economic development (TAED), technology parks, including children's ones. Conclusion Today, digitalization from an abstract concept is transformed into real action by various states. The International Data Corporation (IDC) estimates that in 2018, global spend- ing on digital transformation will exceed $ 1 trillion [16]. Speaking about the situation in Russia and summing up, it should be noted that the gap between the regional centers, except the capital regions, is not so great, but several features cannot be overlooked. Firstly, the degree of development of infrastructures, namely, this aspect reflects the indicator of the scoring rating, is significantly higher among those entities that are lo- cated closer to the metropolitan region. Moreover, it is characteristic that at the same 25 time, the outflow of the population in them is approximately equal to the outflow of human capital from remote regions with the least developed infrastructure. From which we can conclude: regions with the most developed infrastructure, with a higher quality of life and proximity to the capital, like a magnet, attract high-quality human capital. They devastate the regions in which the infrastructure is developing, but there are no prospects for further development and high-paying employment. To the same extent, entities in which the necessary infrastructure is less developed and there is an acute shortage of high-quality human capital suffer from the loss of this resource. Since they cannot provide themselves with quality human capital. Secondly, climatic features, considerable remoteness, isolation, and other features of some regions significantly complicate human life and work in these conditions. It is necessary to eliminate such distortions. Besides, there is such a problem as a lack of funding for digitalization processes, both at the federal and regional levels. This is especially true for those subjects of Rus- sia where the problem of the budget deficit has not been solved. All regions that have prepared digitalization projects are counting on co-financing from the federal center. But, according to information from open sources, out of 1,08 trillion rubles of budgetary investments in the digital economy, only two sums are accounted for as targeted invest- ments in the regions: 250 million rubles to bring the security level of significant objects of critical information infrastructure to the specified values. And 1,4 billion rubles - to connect Chukotka to a single network. This is another aspect of digital inequality since, without access to the Internet, it is impossible to use either the State services or the services of Smart Cities. Still, there are having many problems, especially in the lagging regions of the Russian Federation with the introduction of modern cellular communi- cation standards. Only a third of cellular base stations support the modern standard of mobile Internet - 4G and LTE (Long-Term Evolution). The introduction of the 5G standard has been postponed until 2022. At the end of 2018, 25% of the population of Russia does not have Internet access. There is a problem of the lack of curricula and disciplines in new professions, in fact already existing, but outside the legal field, for example, specialists in digital assets and blockchain. There is still no centralization and generalization of regional digital projects, the exchange of experience, developments. There is no motivation for industrial state-owned enterprises, except for agriculture, because access to world markets is limited by sanctions, and domestic orders do not require digital modernization, as the current level of manufacturability is sufficient for their implementation. In conclusion, it should be noted that at this stage of the implementation of the Dig- ital Economy of Russia program, there are qualitative positive changes that are sup- ported by society. Besides, these changes will play no less important role in the for- mation of high-quality human capital than the development of high-quality social, transport, and engineering infrastructure. Already, it is comparable in relevance to in- vestment in housing, kindergartens, schools, universities, hospitals, sports and enter- tainment complexes, cultural facilities, transport, energy facilities, utilities. Now the digitalization of the economy should occur at a completely different quality and innovation level, united in a single information system, where human access to these benefits of civilization is a key task and an essential part of the digitalization of 26 the economic space of modern Russia. All this will make a person's life full, high qual- ity. Such an approach to the development of regional infrastructure, as a kind of unified system today, is due to the need to withdraw several regions from the economic blow associated with the opposition of the aggressive environment that has developed on the international market in recent decades. It is important to understand that investing in the development, modernization, digitalization, and innovation of regional infrastruc- ture will fill the labor market with qualified personnel, reduce unemployment, increase people's incomes, quality of life, and form a solid foundation for the functioning of the digital economy. References 1. Korchagin Yu. A. Rossijskij chelovecheskij kapital: faktor razvitiya ili degradacii? Mono- grafiya [Russian human capital: a factor of development or degradation? Monograph]. Vo- ronezh: CIRE. 2005, 252 p. (In Russ.). 2. Taktarova S. V., Tuguskinac G. N. Upravlenie formirovaniem chelovecheskogo kapitala v usloviyax innovacionnogo razvitiya e`konomiki: monografiya [Managing the formation of human capital in the conditions of innovative economic development: monograph]. Mos- cow: RUSAYNS. 2018, 211 p. (In Russ.). 3. Brik L. V., Gorel`Cev A. G. K voprosu o sushhnosti ponyatiya "chelovecheskij kapital" [On the essence of the concept "human capital"]. Vestnik of MSTU, 2014, 17(4), pp. 637-642. (In Russ.). 4. Smith, Adam. Issledovanie o prirode i prichinax bogatstva narodov [Inquiry into the nature and causes of the wealth of nations]. M., Eksmo. 2007, 956 p. (In Russ.). 5. Laskowska Iwona, Dańska-Borsiak Barbara. The Importance Of Human Capital For The Economic Development Of EU Regions, Comparative Economic Research. Central and Eastern Europe. 2016, 19(5), pp. 63-79. DOI: 10.1515/cer-2016-0038 6. Perepelkin, Viacheslav; Perepelkina, Elena. Reduction of an economy's raw material de- pendence and the human capital of a country. Comparative Economic Research, Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Warsaw. 2017, 20(1), pp. 53-73. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/cer-2017- 0004 7. Schultz, Theodore W. The economic value of education. New York, Columbia University Press, 1963. 8. Ermolina L. V., Golikov V. V., Kozenko Z. N., Ponosova E. V. Role of human capital among the indicators of enterprise’s strategic effectiveness. Quality - Access to Success. 2018, 19(162), pp. 92-95. 9. Kapkaev I., Nurmukhametov I. Quality of the Human Capital and State Support of Devel- opment of Regional Infrastructure. In: Solovev D. (eds) Smart Technologies and Innovations in Design for Control of Technological Processes and Objects: Economy and Production. FarEastСon 2018. Springer, Cham, Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies. 2020, vol 138, pp. 367-380. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15577-3_36 10. Nurmukhametov I. A. Ekonomicheski aktivnyy vozrast rabochey sily [Economically active labor age]. Sovremennyye ekonomicheskiye otnosheniya: v poiskakh novoy modeli, vtoraya mezhdunarodnaya nauchnaya konferentsiya [Modern economic relations: in search of a new model, the second international scientific conference]. Chelyabinsk. 2016, pp. 29-33. (In Russ.). 27 11. Kapkaev Y. S., Nurmukhametov I. A. Dependence of intramigration processes on the de- velopment of regional infrastructure. CIEDR International Scientific and Practical Confer- ence "Contemporary Issues of Economic Development of Russia: Challenges and Opportu- nities". 2018, № 92, pp. 855-863. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2019.04.92 12. Fernihough, Alan. Human capital and the quantity-quality trade-off during the demographic transition. Journal of Economic Growth. 2017, 22 (1), pp. 35-65. 13. Kapkayev Yu.Sh. Institutsional'nyye problemy i regional'naya ekonomika [Institutional problems and regional economics] Vestnik Chelyabinskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta [Bulletin of Chelyabinsk State University]. 2011, 32 (247), pp. 39-46. (In Russ.). 14. Arkatov A.Yu., Yevtushenko Ye.I., Manin A.V., Dolzhenko Ye.S., Ragimov F.I. Sotsial'no- ekonomicheskoye razvitiye osudarstva v kontekste formirovaniya innovatsionnoy sredy [Socioeconomic development of the state in the context of the formation of an innovative environment]. 2014, 9 (22), pp. 16843-16853. (In Russ.). 15. Titarenko G.G. Strategiya vosproizvodstva chelovecheskogo kapitala v kontseptsii razvitiya natsional 'noy innovatsionnoy sistemy [Human capital reproduction strategy in the concept of development of the national innovation system]. 2013, № 11-12, vol. 1, pp. 27-29. (In Russ.). 16. Tsifrovoy indeks Rossii, Tsentr finansovykh innovatsiy i beznalichnoy ekonomiki Mos- kovskoy shkoly upravleniya SKOLKOVO, 2018 [Russian Digital Index, Center for Finan- cial Innovation and Cashless Economy]. Available at: http://d-russia.ru/vyshla-polnaya- versiya-rejtinga-regionov-po-urovnyu-razvitiya-tsifrovizatsii-tsif & # 8230. (In Russ.). 17. Attanasio O., Meghir C., Nix E., Salvati F. Human capital growth and poverty: Evidence from Ethiopia and Peru. Review of Economic Dynamics. 2017, 25, pp. 234-259. 18. Sherkunov S.A. Upravleniye innovatsionnoy deyatel'nost'yu na osnove razvitiya chelovech- eskogo kapitala (regional'nyy aspekt) [Innovation management based on the development of human capital (regional aspect)], Vladimir, Vladimir State University. 2011, p. 28. (In Russ.). 19. Zhou Y. Human capital, institutional quality and industrial upgrading: global insights from industrial data. Economic Change and Restructuring. 2018, 51(1), School of Economics and Finance, Curtin University, Australia.