New funds follow steps by Ukravtodor towards strengthening governance
-€190 million loan tranche to upgrade sections of M-05 Kyiv-Odesa road
-Funds extended as road agency takes steps towards strengthening governance
-Reform at Ukravtodor a litmus test for broader anti-corruption programme
Encouraged by steps taken by Ukraine’s state road agency Ukravtodor, the Board of Directors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a new €190 million loan tranche for further improvements to the country’s road infrastructure.
Part of a €450 million package, the tranche will finance the upgrade of sections of the M-05 Kyiv-Odesa road in the Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv and Odesa regions.
The provision of the new tranche follows efforts by Ukravtodor to review its governance systems, with a view to advancing reforms. These include a comprehensive anti-corruption action plan developed by independent experts, which was approved by a high-level steering group comprising representatives of the government, the president’s office, the EBRD and Ukravtodor itself.
The plan, which is already being implemented, envisages a robust approach to integrity compliance, improved corporate governance and internal anti-corruption controls, policies and procedures. It also aims to pave the way for a culture of integrity throughout the organisation.
Ukravtodor’s effort to fight corruption in road building is the pilot programme under the memorandum of understanding signed in October 2020 between the government of Ukraine and the EBRD to strengthen corporate governance in the state sector. It is seen as a litmus test for a broader anti-corruption and good governance programme backed by the EBRD and targeting Ukrainian state-owned enterprises and public-sector entities.
In addition, Ukravtodor has prepared an e-mobility action plan to support electric-vehicle deployment in the country and is establishing a Road Safety Department.
The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Ukraine. To date, the Bank has invested almost €16 billion in 506 projects across the country, with a focus on assisting economic stabilisation, anchoring reforms, strengthening energy efficiency and energy security, and supporting agricultural and industrial projects as well as smaller businesses.
Holding elections completely online in Ukraine is impossible, head of the Servant of the People faction David Arakhamia said. “Let’s dot the ‘i’ right here now. Opponents disperse the idea that there will be a vote using a mobile phone. This is a priori impossible, because according to the Constitution we have a secret voting process, you should not be identified in this process. A cell phone identifies by default,” Arakhamia said in an exclusive interview with the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
At the same time, the MP supports the conduct of electronic counting of votes in elections, as is done in the United States and many other countries.
“Electronic counting of votes would make the electoral process more transparent, would allow more efficient processing of data,” said Arakhamia.
However, according to the head of the faction, it is unlikely to launch an electronic counting of votes before the next elections, because it is necessary to purchase equipment, and only the procedure for purchasing it through the Prozorro system usually takes six months.
“We have not yet completed digitalization so that all data goes through secure communication channels. And, frankly speaking, electronic counting of votes at polling stations looks unlikely so far. Maybe as an experiment in some polls to show how this can work in parallel with the usual counting of votes,” the MP said.
National bank of Ukraine’s official rates as of 20/12/21
Source: National Bank of Ukraine
Official rates of banking metals from national bank as of December 20
One troy ounce=31.10 grams
The Adonis medical group at the Podil branch in Kyiv has implemented a knopka system to control the safety of patients.
According to a press release from Adonis, the knopka system is a Ukrainian technology startup that has proven its effectiveness in a number of state-owned clinics, including in the COVID-19 wards for critically ill patients, where there is a high workload on staff.
At the Adonis clinic in Podil, the first stage of the system has been launched, which allows tracking the work of nurses. The launch of the second phase will make it possible to make not only hospital beds and toilets safe for patients, but also any point in the hospital.
“The system will check the arrival of a medical team where the patient may feel bad – from wards to doctors’ offices in the clinic. Thus, the clinic plans to comply with the international safety standard under the Code Blue,” the medical group said.
As explained, the knopka system receives signals from buttons that are accessible to patients in the clinic and generates messages to the phone, which are received by nurses and doctors. Thus, doctors identify the patient and where he is. In addition, the system checks if the medical staff was at the patient’s bed in no more than 2-3 minutes.
If a MAWI sensor is connected to the patient, which monitors the pulse, pressure, body position in space, saturation and other indicators in real time and if the indicators become critical, the system notifies the medical staff and generates messages of the highest priority. The medical team will be in the ward in no more than 1-2 minutes.
Adonis is a network of private medical centers for adults and children.
The private clinic Adonis was founded over 20 years ago. Its network includes 12 branches in Kyiv city and the region, including two of its own maternity hospitals and a stem cell laboratory.
In the branches of the clinic, doctors from 66 medical areas receive patients.
