Non-governmental organizations, businesses, analytical and research institutions, activists are joining hands to find ways to bring the Ukrainian economy out of crisis and develop a common, effective strategy for the country’s development.
The National Business Forum, co-organized by influential civic and business associations – the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, the Anti-Crisis Council of NGOs, the Ukrainian Business Initiative, the Federation of Employers of Ukraine, the Nova Kraina civil platform, and others, will take place at NSC Olimpiyskiy Complex in Kyiv on March 18. Young, active organizations, which have been established after the Revolution of Dignity, joined the large associations.
The latter stress that Ukraine has failed in the past years to elaborate its strategy for development; reforms in every sphere of social life are needed. The country’s economy is seen by international experts as weak and corrupt, its industrial potential has weakened, citizens’ buying capacity is on the decline, and there is no effective plan to overcome the crisis. The activists also consider that the government’s decision to sell strategic industrial and energy facilities amid the crisis is surprising, as their financial assessment could hardly be adequate.
“We’ve seen the business sector’s readiness to put off own corporate interests, get united with the public sector and start the formation of a common ‘corridor’ of national interests. It’s not about personalities; it’s about concrete tasks, terms and algorithms of their implementation. These are our priorities and what bring us to a discussion platform, which began to work long ago and will not end with the Forum on March 18,” co-founder of the Ukraine Is Me (uais.me) civil movement Serhiy Ivanov said.
In his words, the country is in dire need of working out common rules of the game, forming a transparent financial system, adopting liberal tax reform, and taking measures to strengthen the hryvnia.
Therefore, the NGOs call on everyone to join the Forum by sending their proposals and ideas.
“The process when society, businesses and think tanks get united is the first step towards a new, civilized form of pursuing the policy in the country,” Nova Kraina co-founder Vladyslav Olenchenko said. “The corporate sector cannot stand apart when public management is in crisis ‒ it has substantial resources and achievements it would like to share and is ready to actively cooperate for the development of the country.”
It should be mentioned that the Forum will bring together about two hundred business associations, industrial and business organizations, NGOs, analytical and research centers.
Their proposals will form the basis for a plan of urgent measures to overcome the social and economic crisis and draw up a strategy for the country’s further development and for an open joint statement on the situation in the country and ways to end the crisis. Members of the public and business structures say they are sure that the developed plan should be used as the basis for the government’s action program for the next two years.
Senior government officials, leaders of parliamentary factions, civil society leaders and representatives of the international community have been invited to the Forum.
KYIV. March 16 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Bayer international chemical and pharmaceutical concern sold $100 million more in crop planting sector goods last year than in 2014.
“Bayer’s total sales in Ukraine last year exceeded EUR 283 million. Sales of goods in the crop planting sphere – EUR 100 million,” Head of Bayer Crop Science in Northern Black Sea Countries Andreas Loechel told reporters on Monday.
He said that sales of crop goods did not change in the U.S. dollar equivalent, but they posted an 18% increase in hryvnias due to local currency devaluation.
Bayer, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Raiffeisen Bank Aval on March 14 announced the start of a new partner financing program. The program helps agricultural companies and farmers by providing low-cost harvest planning and financing.
The financing term has been adapted to the crop cycle (up to nine months). Payments can be completely settled after selling the summer harvest.
Bayer has been operating in Ukraine since 1992 and focuses on health care, agriculture, and high-tech materials. It is a large supplier of plant protection agents (pesticides, herbicides and fungicides).
KYIV. March 16 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine intends by December 1, 2106 to sign a credit agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) and World Bank to build the Kaniv hydroelectric pumped storage power plant.
According to the government’s action plan for 2016, the relevant legislative measures are to be approved by December 1.
Total cost of the project is assessed at EUR 1.283 billion. The capacity of Kaniv hydroelectric pumped storage power plant will be 1 GW in generating operations, its construction will take six and a half years, and the payback period is about ten and a half years.
Public joint-stock company Ukrhydroenergo seeks to borrow 70% of funds for the project from international banks – EIB, World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Deutsche Bank.
KYIV. March 16 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Public joint-stock company Turboatom (Kharkiv) and Westinghouse Electric Company seek cooperation in the realization of a project to boost the capacity of reactors of VVER-1000 type installed at Ukrainian nuclear power plants (NPPs) to 110% of their nominal capacity, the press service of National Nuclear Generating Company Energoatom has reported.
The company said that coordination and cooperation for increasing the capacity of Ukrainian NPPs is outlined in the memorandum of understanding signed between the companies.
“Strategic cooperation with Turboatom is a good example of how Westinghouse provides its client, Energoatom, with innovation solutions intended to increase the efficiency and safety of NPPs,” the press service said, citing Westinghouse Vice President and Managing Director Aziz Dag.
He said that Westinghouse wants to cooperate with local suppliers in the project.
Energoatom President Yuriy Nedashkovsky, in turn, said that one of the main goals of the company is the efficient exploitation of all operating reactors.
Turboatom Director General Viktor Subotin added that cooperation between Energoatom and Westinghouse provides for expansion of the imports replacement program that would involve other Ukrainian plants.
“Jointly with another Kharkiv plant Electrotyazhmash we want to develop the initiative, particularly, supplies of powerful engines and generators for NPPs,” he said.
