Change in consumer prices in 2022-2023
Source: Open4Business.com.ua and experts.news
The European Parliament has supported the creation of a EUR 50 billion Ukraine Fund for the period 2024-2027 to support Ukraine and implement reforms for the country’s future accession to the European Union.
The relevant resolution was adopted on Tuesday in Strasbourg as part of the European Parliament’s plenary session. “536 deputies voted in favor of the resolution, 40 voted against, and 39 abstained. A total of 615 deputies took part in the voting.
“The Fund should combine recovery, reconstruction and modernization with the requirements and process of accession to the Union, linking financial support to reforms and investments with a view to joining (the EU),” the document says.
The document was authored by representatives of the Foreign Affairs Committee Michael Gahler (Germany) and the Budget Committee Eider Gardiasabal Rubial (Spain).
The resolution stipulates that the EU will support Ukraine in three areas. The first is financial support for the country to implement reforms and investments, as well as to maintain its macro-financial stability. The second is to mobilize investment and increase Ukraine’s access to finance. The third is to help Ukraine on its path to European integration.
The approved decision stipulates that 33% of the resources for Ukraine will be allocated in the form of grants, “with at least 20% earmarked for the restoration, reconstruction and modernization of Ukraine’s subnational authorities, such as regions, cities and local communities.” In addition, 20% of the fund’s investments will be directed to green initiatives, and 15% to small and medium-sized enterprises.
The resolution calls for the Ukrainian government to develop a Plan for Ukraine. This plan, as noted in the document, will be “a coherent, comprehensive and adequately balanced recovery and modernization effort that supports Ukraine’s economic, social and environmental recovery, sustainable development and progress towards accession to the Union”, in line with the goals and requirements of the EUR 50 billion Ukraine Fund.
The Ukraine Plan is expected to provide a framework for other donors to identify priority areas for funding the country’s recovery.
The activities of the Ukraine Fund are to be evaluated annually by the European Commission.
“For effective monitoring, Ukraine should report once a year on the progress of the implementation of measures. Such reports prepared by the government should be appropriately reflected in the Ukraine Plan. Relevant reporting requirements should be applied to the recipients of Union funding,” the resolution says.
The EP resolution also calls for the development of ways to “utilize frozen Russian assets.
The text emphasizes “the importance of working with international allies to achieve this goal.” “This includes ensuring progress on how to use frozen Russian assets to help rebuild Ukraine,” the document says.
The approval of the Fund for Ukraine by the European Parliament now paves the way for the EU Council to adopt an official regulation, which will enter into force after publication in the EU’s Official Journal.
Earlier, the European Commission’s proposal to establish the Ukraine Fund was approved by the EU Council at an extraordinary meeting on February 1, as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban blocked the decision at a scheduled meeting held last December.
During a working visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with the Crown Prince, Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Muhammad bin Salman Al Saud.
“The Ukrainian head of state emphasized the desire of Saudi Arabia to help restore a just peace in Ukraine,” the presidential press service reported.
Zelensky and Muhammad bin Salman Al Saud exchanged views on the current situation in the world and possible ways to end the war in Ukraine.
The parties discussed the realization of the Formula for Peace. The President of Ukraine thanked the Crown Prince for his valuable advice on speeding up the process of implementation of a number of its points.
“Saudi Arabia’s leadership can help to find fair solutions,” the President said.
The Head of State informed the Crown Prince about the preparation by Ukraine together with its partners of the first Global Summit of Peace at the level of leaders, which will be held in Switzerland. Volodymyr Zelensky and Muhammad bin Salman Al Saud discussed the content of the summit and possible steps to really restore security for Ukraine, all of Europe and all peoples of the world.
“We are equally interested in ensuring global stability,” the President emphasized.
The leaders also discussed specific opportunities for bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and Saudi Arabia in the economic and technological sphere.
Volodymyr Zelensky and Muhammad bin Salman Al Saud instructed the teams of the two states to work on the relevant areas discussed during the meeting.
Housing commissioning in Ukraine in 2023 increased by 3.8% compared to 2022, to 7 million 380.7 thousand square meters, the State Statistics Service reported.
According to the report, 4 million 276.9 thousand square meters of housing were put into operation in cities in 2023, which is 10% lower than the previous year. In rural areas, 31.6% more housing was commissioned than in 2022 – 3 million 103.8 thousand square meters.
At the same time, 47.2% of the total housing volume was commissioned in single-family houses, 52.6% in houses with two or more apartments, and 0.2% in dormitories.
In total, 89.2 thousand apartments were commissioned last year, which is 3.5% less than in 2022. At the same time, 57.2 thousand apartments were commissioned in cities and 32 thousand apartments in villages.
At the end of 2023, the largest number of housing was commissioned in Kyiv region – 1 million 387.6 thousand square meters (18.8% of the total), but compared to 2022, the figure decreased by 4.8%. Next comes Lviv region – 769.4 thousand sq m (10.4%), exceeding the previous year’s result by 6.8%; Vinnytsia region – 658.5 thousand sq m (8.9%), plus 62.8% by 2022; Ivano-Frankivsk region – 526 thousand sq m (7.1%), plus 6.6%, respectively.
In Kyiv, 1 million 13.8 thousand square meters of housing (13.7%) were commissioned last year, which is 11.6% higher than in 2022.
According to the State Statistics Service, the largest increase in housing commissioning in 2023 was recorded in Kharkiv region, where the figure increased 5 times year-on-year to 260.6 thousand square meters (3.5% of the total).
The growth of housing commissioning compared to the previous year was also recorded in Cherkasy (+78.4%, to 166.8 thousand sq. m.), Donetsk (+52, to 5.5 thousand sq. m.), Dnipropetrovs’k (+29.2%, to 235.1 thousand sq. m.), Sumy (+24.7%, to 52.3 thousand sq. m.), Ternopil (+24.7%, to 52.3 thousand sq. m.), Sumy (+24.7%, to 52.3 thousand sq. m.), Ternopil (+24.7%, to 52.3 thousand sq. m.), and Ternopil (+24.7%, to 52.3 thousand sq. m.) regions. sq. m), Sumy (+24.7%, to 52.3 thousand sq. m) regions. sq. m), Ternopil (+18.3%, to 216.6 thousand sq. m), Zakarpattia (+17.8%, to 364.2 thousand sq. m), Volyn (+15.2%, to 316.2 thousand sq. m), Zaporizhzhia (+12.4%, to 21.5 thousand sq. m) and Chernivtsi (+6.9%, to 235.7 thousand sq. m) regions. Other regions showed a decrease in the volume of housing commissioned.
The data are given taking into account the housing commissioned in accordance with the temporary procedure for commissioning houses built without a building permit, as well as excluding the territories temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation and part of the territory where hostilities are/were conducted, the State Statistics Service reminds.
As reported, at the end of 2022, the commissioning of housing in Ukraine decreased by 37.8% compared to 2021 – to 7 million 110.2 thousand square meters.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Saudi Arabia to discuss the Ukrainian formula for peace and the return of prisoners and deportees, the Head of State said.
“Arrived in Saudi Arabia to continue our regular dialogue with His Highness Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud,” Zelensky wrote on his Telegram channel on Tuesday.
“The number one topic is the Formula for Peace. Last year in Jeddah, we held an effective meeting at the level of advisers on its implementation. We are now close to holding the first Peace Summit and look forward to continued active support from Saudi Arabia,” the president said.
According to Zelenskyy, topic number two is “the return of prisoners and deportees. Saudi leadership has already contributed to the release of our people. I am confident that this meeting will bring results.”
The parties also plan to discuss “promising areas of economic cooperation and Saudi Arabia’s participation in the restoration of Ukraine.”
In January of this year, the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU) made 643 regulatory payments from the Victims Protection Fund (VPF), which is 1.7% less than a year earlier.
According to a report on the MTIBU website, the total amount of such payments increased by 15.9% to UAH 36.3 million compared to January 2023.
The largest volume of payments – UAH 24.9 million, or 68.5% by amount and 397 by number – was for damage caused by road traffic accidents that did not have a valid MTPL policy. At the same time, the number of such payments increased by 9.8% and the amount by 18.5%.
In the reporting period, almost 99 payments amounting to UAH 6.03 million were made to drivers of privileged categories under the FOP, which is 4% less in number and 21.2% more in amount than in January last year. The share of payments to beneficiaries is 16.59% of the total amount of payments from the MTIBU Victims Protection Fund.
In January, MTIBU paid UAH 80 thousand under the liabilities of insurance companies that ceased operations and were declared bankrupt.
Under the liabilities of companies that ceased operations in the MTPL market but were declared bankrupt in accordance with the procedure established by law, payments were made at the expense of the guarantee premiums of such insurers available in the MTIBU’s guarantee fund in the amount of UAH 5.33 million.
The MTIBU also notes that the minimum amount of statutory payments for road accidents caused by an unidentified vehicle remains the same – UAH 7 thousand (in such cases, payments are made only in case of a threat to life and health).
