Sweden has signed a cooperation agreement with the Swedish-Ukrainian non-profit organization, Beetroot Academy, on a three-year support program, which will allow the organization to double the number of IT schools in Ukraine. “Beetroot Academy will be able to double the number of IT schools and expand the network to 20 locations across the country, as well as develop new IT courses to master technical and communication skills,” the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine said.
Now Beetroot Academy offers six IT courses in 10 different cities of Ukraine: from Mariupol in the east to Ivano-Frankivsk in the west. Many of these schools will open in small towns, also in the east of Ukraine, which will help to enhance economic potential and competitiveness of the small municipalities in Ukraine, the Embassy said. Beetroot Academy is a non-profit organization working in the field of professional IT education, it was founded in 2014. Its courses are based on mixed teaching methods and professionally teach English.
The growth of Ukraine’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 will slow to 3% from 3.2% in 2018, but then it will accelerate to 3.8% in 2020 and 4.1% in 2021, such a base-case scenario is proposed by Ukraine’s Ministry of Economic Development and Trade for approval by the government. The ministry’s draft forecast of the economic and social development of Ukraine for 2019-2021, which is available to Interfax-Ukraine and is put on the agenda of a government meeting on Wednesday, the base-case scenario is also based on a slowdown in inflation from 13.7% in 2017 to 9.9% in 2018, further to 7.4% in 2019, 5.6% in 2020 and 5% in 2021.
The ministry has also developed two other scenarios. According to the more optimistic scenario, the growth of the Ukrainian economy will accelerate 4.1% in 2019, 5% in 2020 and 5.4% in 2021, but inflation will be higher: 8.7%, 7% and 5.2%, respectively.
The low-case scenario implies a slowdown in the country’s GDP growth next year to 1.1%, followed by a slight acceleration to 1.6% and 2.1% in 2020 and 2021, respectively. At the same time, inflation under this scenario is expected to accelerate to 12.4% next year, followed by a slowdown to 8.6% and 6.7% in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
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The insurance companies of Ukraine that are members of the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU) in January-May 2018 increased collection of insurance premiums on compulsory insurance of vehicle owners’ civil liability (OSAGO) by 19.8% compared with the same period in 2017, to UAH 1.801 billion. The number of OSAGO contracts for the five months grew by 3.57, to 3. 249 million, the MTIBU’s website said.
In addition, the total amount of insurance claim fee payments on internal insurance contracts rose by 18.8%, to UAH 905 million. In particular UAH 132.8 million was paid using Europrotocols, which is 46.1% more than in January-May 2017.
The bureau also recorded a 0.04% increase in the number of settled insurance cases, to 57,117, of which 14,800 (an increase of 14.3%) using Europrotocols.
The MTIBU is the only association of insurers that carry out compulsory insurance of vehicle owners’ civil liability for harm caused to third parties. Its members are 56 insurance companies, in particular full members of the bureau that have the right to sign Green Card contracts are nine companies.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry considers it necessary to resume joint construction of a nuclear fuel plant in the country with Russia’s TVEL. This is discussed in a letter made available to the Kyiv-based Interfax-Ukraine news agency signed by Minister Ihor Nasalyk, which was sent to First Deputy General Director of Rosatom Kirill Komarov. “Taking into account the existing high level of cooperation in the field of nuclear energy, the prospects for increasing cooperation, as well as the need to resume a number of joint projects, in particular, the project to launch TVEL production in Ukraine, we propose holding a meeting in Brussels from July 9 to July 12, the letter says.
As earlier reported, before the annexation of Crimea by Russia, Ukraine planned the construction of a plant in Kirovohrad region to produce nuclear fuel based on the technology developed by the Russian fuel company TVEL. Pr JSC named “Plant for the production of nuclear fuel” was created, in which Ukrainian state-owned concern “Nuclear Fuel” owns 50% plus one share, and TVEL has 50% minus one share. It was assumed that in 2015 the plant was to start producing fuel elements and fuel assemblies, as well as zirconium components and components made of stainless steel, and in 2020 it was to start manufacturing fuel powders and tablets.
The total cost of the construction of the plant was estimated at $450 million.
In February 2016, Ukraine’s State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate turned down the application of the “Plant for the Production of Nuclear Fuel” for a license for the construction of the fuel plant. At the same time, TVEL’s annual report stated its readiness to return to the project in Ukraine on the same terms.
