Difficulties and priorities of the development of the digital economy in the Agri-Industrial Complex

Abstract

Subject. The digital economy reveals the extent of technological obsolescence of the AIC. However, although the public gets more and more interested in this innovative line of development, there is still a lack of good understanding of the substance and content of the digital economy. The country has appropriate conditions for mastering digital technologies, but systemic difficulties impede their diffusion in the AIC. Objectives. The study examines respective difficulties and determines priorities of the digital economy development in the AIC. Methods. The study rests on proceedings by foreign and Russian scholars who examined theoretical and practical aspects of agricultural digitalization. We also refer to official statistics and documents on governmental and special-purpose agricultural development programs. The study involves the systems approach, monographs, statistical, graphical methods. Results. We sorted the existing approaches to interpreting the content of the digital economy. The article determined what impedes the digitalization in agriculture and examines the practices of mastering digital technologies. The scientific community was found to be very interested in the digital agriculture. However, Russian scholars are not very conversant with the digitalization practices due to multiple difficulties. Therefore, there should be respective information campaigns, involving the government. Operational cases of agricultural businesses should be showcased. Conclusions and Relevance. To overcome difficulties integrating the digital economy in agriculture, market actors should pull through serious barriers, such as high investment risks associated with investment in digital technologies, poor awareness of business communities about opportunities and successful cases of digital solutions, insufficient involvement of authorities and many other economic and political aspects.