The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) provided record financial assistance of EUR 2.1 billion in 2023, while in the coming years it plans to finance Ukraine in the amount of EUR 1.5 billion annually, according to a press release.
“Investments in Ukraine during the war are planned to continue at around €1.5 billion per year, while the capital increase makes it possible to double this amount when the time comes for recovery,” the EBRD said in a statement.
Last year, the EBRD’s executives decided to increase the Bank’s paid-in capital by EUR 4 billion to EUR 34 billion to provide further support to Ukraine.
The bank reminded that Ukraine was provided with EUR 2.1 billion last year and EUR 1.7 billion in 2022, which allowed the EBRD to fulfill its goal of investing up to EUR 3 billion in Ukraine in 2022-2023 in October last year.
It is noted that donor funding to support the real sector of the country’s economy during this period amounted to EUR1.6 billion. It is specified that more than EUR409 million of this amount was allocated in 2023 alone.
“Almost half of the donor resources were provided by the European Union. Significant contributions were also made by individual donors, including Canada, Norway, Spain, and the Netherlands,” the release reads.
Moreover, last year, the EBRD allocated EUR 1 billion in the private sector, including EUR 600 million in loans through partner financial institutions in Ukraine and EUR 400 million under its Trade Facilitation Program.
The EBRD currently identifies five priority areas for investment in Ukraine: energy security, critical infrastructure, food security, trade and private sector support.
In addition to financing, the bank continues to support reforms in Ukraine, the implementation of which will facilitate further private sector investment and Ukraine’s further progress towards EU membership. The EBRD reportedly continued to work with the government and other state agencies on issues related to European integration and fulfillment of EU requirements during the above-mentioned time.
The Bank is also assisting Ukraine in preparing for the effective use of the large amounts of funding that will be needed during the recovery phase, and the EBRD, together with the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the World Bank, is helping ministries and agencies to develop institutional capacity, as well as providing technical assistance to the State Agency for the Reconstruction and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine to establish an effective project office.
“Ukrposhta is creating its own network of cargo offices, with 41 bulky cargo acceptance points planned to open in regional centers in 2024, the company said on Thursday.
“Analyzing the requests of customers and partners and the demand for services, the company is implementing a project of cargo offices specializing in receiving and delivering shipments. This will help to avoid queues at branches that also accept payments for bills, including utility bills and pensions,” Ukrposhta said.
It is noted that Ukrposhta’s cargo offices will be able to ship international and domestic parcels weighing up to 30 kg with a maximum side of 200 cm. Cash on delivery and the purchase of packaging will also be available.
In addition, the cargo offices will have a front line for receiving small shipments and a ramp with the ability to drive five- and ten-ton trucks.
In the future, Ukrposhta is considering raising the weight criteria or working without weight restrictions.
The project has already reformatted 13 branches in Kharkiv, Odesa, Khmelnytsky and Chernivtsi. In addition, a new branch has been opened in Kharkiv at 118 Heroiv Kharkivu Avenue. In the future, Ukrposhta will focus on key cities in the country with a population of 80,000 or more when opening new freight branches, the company said.
Among other things, closed-type cargo offices will be located on the territory of corporate clients, in particular, ROZETKA, Yves Rocher and Epicenter.
“Customers want to receive high-quality service, so the market directs us where to move despite all the difficulties of wartime. “Ukrposhta is launching cargo offices that are maximally adapted to receive and deliver large volumes of shipments. Container exchange is envisaged to significantly accelerate logistics processes,” the statement quoted Yosyp Bornak, Ukrposhta’s deputy director general for network development, as saying.
“Ukrposhta provides postal financial and other services in stationary and mobile offices in more than 27 thousand settlements of Ukraine. Thanks to Ukrposhta’s cooperation with postal operators in other countries, Ukrainians have access to about 660 thousand offices abroad.
DTEK Group’s total investments in its areas of activity in Ukraine, excluding the Tiligul wind farm project, amounted to approximately $550 million in 2023, and $1 billion in total since the beginning of the full-scale war, said Maxim Timchenko, CEO of the group.
“The total volume of investments in DTEK Group, excluding the Tiligul wind farm project (EUR 200 million – IF-U), was approximately $550 million last year, and $1 billion in total since the beginning of the full-scale war,” Timchenko said in an exclusive blitz interview with Interfax-Ukraine from the International Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.
According to him, during the war, DTEK “invested huge amounts of money in grids, power plants, coal mining, oil and gas.”
“There are probably not many Ukrainian companies that have invested so much in the country’s economy during a full-scale war,” the DTEK CEO emphasized.
Denmark is contributing DKK 91 million ($13.3 million) to projects to support the development of cybersecurity and defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
“The donation is made under the auspices of the Estonia-led and Luxembourg-led IT Coalition for Ukraine, which Denmark has joined along with a number of other countries,” the statement said.
Denmark and other members of the IT Coalition signed a cooperation agreement yesterday on the sidelines of a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group.
“This donation is an important contribution to the long-term support for strengthening Ukraine’s cyber defense. Since the beginning of the invasion, Denmark has made a significant contribution to the Ukrainian liberation struggle, and this also applies to cyberspace,” said Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen.
In addition to Denmark, the coalition includes Estonia, Luxembourg, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Ukraine. So far, Denmark, Estonia and Luxembourg have made financial donations to the coalition.
Import changes in % to previous period in 2022-2023
Source: Open4Business.com.ua and experts.news
The Cabinet of Ministers has expanded the list of medical products that are mandatory for purchase through the electronic catalog Prozorro Market.
According to the state enterprise “Medical Procurement of Ukraine” (MPU), thus, more than 400 categories of medicines and 92 categories of medical devices will be mandatory for purchase through the electronic catalog.
The relevant changes, enshrined in the government resolution No. 34 regarding medical devices, have already entered into force, while regarding medicines the innovations will be applied from March 1, 2024.
In 2023, more than 1600 customers conducted 13 thousand transactions using Prozorro Market to purchase medicines and medical devices.
The total value of medical goods purchased through electronic catalogs in 2022 amounted to $28 million, in 2023 – $ 2.5 billion.
Prozorro Market electronic catalog works on the principle of the market and is free for customers. With its help, customers can quickly, conveniently and favorably buy products. The medical part of the catalog is administered by specialists from the Ministry of Health.
CABINET OF MINISTERS, Medical Procurement of Ukraine, Prozorro Market
