Tsifrovoi Les: Nizhny Novgorod’s Forestry Authority Reviews the Platform’s 2025 Results
In 2025, the Tsifrovoi Les (Digital Forest) platform processed more than 14,000 applications from residents of the region. The most in-demand service was the issuance of hunting permits, with more than 12,000 approvals granted.
From Lines at the Counter to a Personal Account
In just one year, the Tsifrovoi Les platform, which now brings together 14 online services out of a possible 18, has evolved into a full-fledged one-stop shop for hunters, forest users, and businesses. Submitting forest plot assessments, filing forest declarations, obtaining hunting licenses, or passing expert reviews of forest management projects can now be done remotely. This has significantly improved access to public services, especially for residents of remote areas, and reduced administrative barriers.
More importantly, the underlying logic of interaction has changed. Citizens receive fast and convenient services without the need for in-person visits, while the government benefits from optimized workflows, reduced paper-based processes, and automatic data integration with the federal forestry information system. Through that federal system alone, more than one million public services have already been delivered.
Digitizing Fieldwork
Since 2022, the Nizhny Novgorod regional forestry authority has been actively introducing digital solutions aimed at modernizing the sector. The rollout began with a web-based version of the departmental information system Tsifrovoi Les, followed by a mobile application for inspectors and forestry specialists. The app allows them to submit field inspection data, including photo documentation of violations, quickly and even offline, syncing with the unified system later. This approach increases mobility, transparency, and response speed for oversight bodies, directly contributing to forest protection.
Successful integration with federal registries has demonstrated the viability of a “regional front office – federal back-office system” model. The region’s experience, recognized as a best digitalization case at the Digital Thaw 2024 conference, is already serving as a reference point for other regions across Russia.
Toward a Forest Ecosystem
Similar digital forestry platforms are being developed in many countries seeking more efficient and transparent management of natural resources. Russia’s regional experience is particularly valuable as a working model of rapid deployment that has proven its operational and social effectiveness.
Tsifrovoi Les is expected to continue expanding, with new services and predictive forest management capabilities enabled by the integration of geospatial data. Digitalization here is not merely about transferring paper documents into electronic form. It represents the creation of an entirely new, more transparent and user-friendly environment for addressing both everyday needs and business tasks.
In the Nizhny Novgorod region, Tsifrovoi Les has moved beyond the pilot stage and become a functioning infrastructure of trust between the state and society. The future of public services lies in end-to-end digital solutions that save citizens’ most valuable resources – time and effort – while simultaneously improving sector-level governance at a national scale.
