Rostyslav Shurma, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, speaking at the Rebuild Ukraine conference in Toronto, Canada, spoke about the conditions for the recovery of the Ukrainian economy.
“We believe that Ukraine’s economy should recover primarily at the expense of private business. However, due to military risks, any projects will be difficult for private investors to implement. That is why they should be built on the basis of public-private partnerships,” Shurma explained, the press service of the President’s Office told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, today there is a positive example of Germany and France, which have provided state insurance for all their corporations that have invested in Ukraine.
“We believe that this type of partnership will allow us to achieve two key goals. On the one hand, you will be able to get a return on your investment because Ukraine has many natural advantages. On the other hand, your governments will mitigate the risks arising from the war,” he said.
According to Mr. Shurma, there are two opportunities for Canadian investors to make money in Ukraine right now. The first is related to the country’s and economy’s recovery. The second is that Ukraine has natural advantages.
As an example, Shurma cited the experience of Westinghouse, which supplies nuclear fuel to Ukrainian NPPs. “We are converting one reactor after another to Westinghouse fuel. And we are determined to purchase one hundred percent of the fuel only from them,” he said.
Another possible area for investment, he said, is the Ukrainian agricultural sector, which is a huge consumer of fertilizers, crop protection products, seeds and agricultural machinery, and therefore a market for Canadian producers.
“We will be interested not only in supplying these products, but also in localizing their production in Ukraine,” Shurma said.
According to him, any agricultural product produced in Ukraine will have advantages in the international market. “Chicken produced in Ukraine is one of the cheapest in the world. This is due to the natural resources of our country,” he emphasized.
Ukraine also has significant natural gas reserves, he noted. The country has a huge potential for solar, wind and hydrogen production. It has the largest lithium and uranium reserves in Europe.
“We are ready to work together with Canadian investors to develop these resources. We can use such tools as export credit agencies and guarantees from the Canadian government for this purpose,” says Shurma. In his opinion, real investment can only come in something that will be commercially successful. “The Ukrainian people really appreciate Canada’s assistance. That is why we are looking forward to you investing in our country,” said the deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.
