Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers has approved a plan of implementation of the public policy strategy on the population’s healthy and active longevity until 2022. “The resolution is passed to implement the state policy strategy on population’s healthy and active longevity until 2022, including provisions of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, EU, European Atomic Energy Community and their member states, Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA) and for the creation of favorable conditions for healthy ageing and active longevity, adaptation of public institutions to further demographic ageing and the development of a society of equal opportunities for people of any age,” Ukraine’s Social Policy Ministry said.
Ukraine is among the 30 oldest countries in the world according to the proportion of people aged 60 and over. This figure was 21.8%, and the percentage of people aged 65 and over was 15.5% of the total number of population in 2015.
Ukraine’s demographic forecast notes people aged over 60 will account for 25% of the total population by the year of 2025, and people aged 65 – 18.4%. Same age strata will account for more than 26% and more than 20%, respectively, by the year 2030.
Implementation of the action plan will help solving problems associated with population ageing. Such measures will facilitate protection of the elderly citizen’s rights with the concentration of efforts in priority areas – improvement of the conditions for older citizens’ self-realization and their participation in the society’s development, promoting their health and well-being; and creating of the environment, which is favorable for active living.
Ukraine in 2018 could increase exports of poultry by 7.4%, to 290,000 tonnes, the Union of Poultry Farmers of Ukraine has said. “A record-breaking amount of poultry meat was exported in 2017 – 270,000 tonnes. This indicator will reach 290,000 tonnes in 2018. Along with the increase in exports, there is a tendency to increase the import of poultry meat to Ukraine. In the past year, 116,000 tonnes was imported, and in the current year it is expected to reach 130,000 tonnes,” Director General of the association Serhiy Karpenko said in the report of the association.
According to him, in the course of 2017, 66,700 tonnes of poultry and meat products were exported to the EU and Ukraine was the third among all countries exporting to the EU countries. “The growth in industrial production of broiler meat by 3.3% or by 30,000 tonnes was seen in 2017. For the seven months ending July 2018, production in agricultural enterprises increased by 5.6%,” Karpenko said.
Consumption of eggs in 2017 was 247 units per person. In 2018, the association predicts an increase in the consumption of eggs to 254 pieces per person.
Arricano Real Estate Plc (Cyprus), a managing company and developer of some shopping and leisure centers in Ukraine, in January-June 2018 saw $13.9 million in net profit, which is 12.6% less than in H1 2017.
According to a company report on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) on Thursday, revenue grew by 14.5%, to $14.8 million.
According to the document, the decline in profit was linked with less gain on revaluation of investment property: $9.77 million in H1 2018 compared with $15.63 million in H1 2017.
Total profit over the period grew by 4.6%, to $22.13 million.
Pre-tax profit as of June 30, 2018 fell by 12.2%, reaching $16.2 million compared with $18.4 million a year ago.
Total fair valuation of the company’s portfolio increased by $19.1 million to $240.4 million and occupancy increased to 99.7% as at June 30, 2018 (June 30, 2017: 98.8%). The company signed 68 new lease agreements during H1 2018 compared to 52 in H1 2017.
According to the company’s report, this was a good performance increasing occupancy and achieving an average rental rate (excluding hypermarkets) of $18.5 per sq.m.
Net asset value totaled $74.3 million (December 31, 2017: $52.2 million).
Bank debt at the half-year end was $39.5 million, with the majority of borrowings at the project level at an average rate of 11.5% (in H1 2017 11.1%).
In addition, the company had $4 million of cash and cash equivalents, and non-bank loans of $57.8 million as at June 30, 2018.
The three development sites covering 14 ha in Lukianivka (Kyiv), Petrivka (Kyiv), and Rozumovska (Odesa) continue to be progressed, the company said.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a EUR 50 million credit line to help Ukraine’s railway and road authorities, Ukrzaliznytsia and Ukravtodor, eliminate bottlenecks in European transport networks. As the bank announced, its board of directors approved the project on September 19, 2018. It covers projects for small transport infrastructure worth up to EUR 20 million.
Loans are to be used to improve interaction within the framework of the Eastern Neighborhood and provide substantial support for small-scale but locally significant projects. It is also expected that such financing will improve traffic safety.
The EIB document states that the total cost of this framework project is approximately EUR 110 million, but other sources of co-financing are not specified.
The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine has permitted law firms Asters and EPAP Ukraine (both based in Kyiv) to merge. The committee said that after the merger of operations and assets of the two law firms the merged group Asters and some entities of the EPAP Ukraine group would have joint control over Magisters law firm.
Magisters law firm was founded in Kyiv in 1997 as Magister&Parnters and later was renamed Magisters and expanded its operations to the CIS. In summer 2011, the firm merged with Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners (EPAP).
As reported, in August 2018, the law firms Asters and EPAP Ukraine announced their intention to merge. It was planned that the merger will be completed on October 1, 2018.
The combined firm with its offices in Kyiv and Washington will be the largest in Ukraine with 26 partners and more than 140 lawyers. Over 250 employees will work in the firm.
The Asters and EPAP Ukraine law firms have been working in Ukraine for more than 20 years. They are the leaders of the legal market, have the highest recommendations of international and national ratings.
The Nova Poshta Group predicts that in 2018, the group would increase the number of deliveries to 170 million, which is 16.6% more than last year, Nova Poshta Director Oleksandr Bulba has said.
“The [upward] trend continues in 2018: we expect a 15-20% increase in the eight months ending August this year. We delivered 108 million parcels (for comparison, in the eight months of 2017, 90 million.) Our plan for this year is about 170 million parcels,” he told Interfax-Ukraine.
The press service of the group told Interfax-Ukraine that this year Nova Poshta intends to open up to 600 new points of presence of different formats.
As reported, Nova Poshta in January-June 2018 delivered 78 million items, which is 21% more than in the same period in 2017.
Nova Poshta was founded in 2001. Its network has more than 2,350 depots and a fleet of more than 3,600 trucks. In 2017, more than 145 million items were delivered.
