Volunteers of the Pryirpinia Community Foundation have started sewing unique products – portable stretchers for wounded soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Over the summer, about 185 units have already been produced for the needs of the military. In addition, 280 pillows for hospitals and staging areas have been sewn in the sewing shop. This is stated on the organization’s Facebook page.
Sewing of the unique and at the same time highly demanded products by military paramedics and stabilization centers was started by Irpin volunteers. Since the beginning of the summer, they have already produced about 185 units of tactical stretchers,” the Charitable Foundation’s Facebook page reports.
Tactical soft frameless stretchers are soft stretchers for evacuating and carrying the wounded or for carrying loads manually. Sanitary stretchers are designed to transport patients, injured (wounded) to a sanitary transport for further medical care. Such stretchers are used to transport victims over long distances. Also, these stretchers can be used as an awning or as a bedding to protect against moisture. The tactical soft frameless stretcher has 5 pairs of handles: 4 pairs along the stretcher, 1 pair of handles at the ends. The average market price of such stretchers is 1500 UAH.
“We learned about the need for stretchers and pillows from paramedics and stabilization centers themselves, because we regularly deliver medicines and medical supplies to them,” says Tetiana Lagovska, executive director of the Pryirpin Community Foundation. “We started with a few electric sewing machines that our volunteers found and camouflage fabric that was also found by volunteers. At first, cutting and sewing were localized right in the foundation’s premises, and later the volunteers began to do some of the work at home. Among them, by the way, are residents of the modular town in Gostomel who lost their homes during the fighting.”
According to Lagovska, the sewing shop currently has 15 electric sewing machines, some of them even professional, from former garment factories, and a cutting table made by the husband of one of the volunteers. The raw materials, i.e. camouflage fabric, are provided by other benefactors, while the threads were purchased at the expense of the volunteers. As of today, 185 stretchers and 280 pillows – both regular and anti-decubitus – have been made and filled with cereals, chestnuts, and acorns. The paramedics of the 72nd Black Cossacks Brigade, which is currently fighting near Bakhmut, and the Kraken unit were among the first to receive the stretchers. Other recipients include military units in Kharkiv, Kherson and eastern Ukraine. As well as hospitals in Kyiv, Kyiv region, and Vinnytsia oblast, where wounded Ukrainian defenders are treated.
“If in the first six months of the large-scale aggression the Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers needed bulletproof vests, helmets and even clothes, now the most urgent needs are medicines and medical supplies and equipment,” comments Oleksandr Tyhov, a former soldier of the 72nd Brigade and Chairman of the Public Council at the Bucha District State Administration. According to him, civil society organizations in the Bucha region understand these needs. Thus, the Local Communities Movement and its volunteers Myroslav Sorochenko and Oleh Solomakha constantly send medical supplies to the front line – bandages, dressings, plasters, bandages, medical clothing – and hospitals in Kyiv and Kyiv region receive the necessary medical supplies and medicines. With the active organizational involvement of Olga Kvasova, Deputy Head of the Public Council.
Kvasova, the “Ukraine Native” Charitable Foundation constantly delivers medicines to hospitals, and other philanthropists have provided family medicine outpatient clinics in the Buchanan district with much-needed generators. The same “Pryirpinya Community Foundation”, where members of the public council Tetiana Lagovska and Oleksandr Holizdra volunteer, implemented the “Social Medicine” program this year, handing over UAH 9 million worth of antibiotics to hospitals and public organizations from all over Ukraine with the organizational participation of the Public Council at the Bucha District State Administration.
Armed Forces of Ukraine, Holizdra, Pryirpinia Community Foundation, Лаговська
Ukraine’s total public debt in August 2023 increased by 3.1% to a new historic high: in dollar terms – by $4bn to $132.92bn, in hryvnia terms – by UAH 146.2bn to UAH 4 trillion 860.6bn, according to data on the website of the Ministry of Finance.
According to them, the direct state debt increased by 3.3% to $123.63 billion, or up to UAH 4 trillion 521.1 billion, and amounted to 93.0% of the total amount of public and state-guaranteed debt.
It is reported that external direct debt in August increased by 4.4%, or $3.52 billion, to $83.41 billion, while domestic direct debt increased by 1.1%, or UAH 15.8 billion, to UAH 1 trillion 470.75 billion (equivalent to $40.22 billion).
The total external public debt of Ukraine in August-2023 increased by 4.1%, or $3.58 billion, to $90.77 billion, while the total domestic debt increased by 1.0%, or UAH 15.2 billion, to UAH 1 trillion 541.4 billion.
As a result, the share of total external government debt increased to 68.3%.
As a result, the share of total external government debt rose to 68.3%.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the share of liabilities in euros at the end of August rose to 28.36%, in U.S. dollars – to 26.66%, while in hryvnia decreased to 28.87%, in SDR – to 12.89%, in Canadian dollars – to 2.48%, and in yen and British pounds remained at 0.72% and 0.02%, respectively.
The office also clarified that 64.86% of government debt has a fixed interest rate, while 12.89% is pegged to the IMF rate, 7.85% to SOFR, 3.88% to EURIBOR and 0.72% to TORF.
Another 2.99% of government debt is tied to the consumer price index, while 6.49% is tied to the NBU discount rate. We are talking about government bonds from the portfolio of the National Bank. The newest of them were securities linked to the discount rate, which were purchased by the NBU within the framework of emission financing of the budget.
Finally, 0.31% of government debt has a rate linked to the Ukrainian index of interest rates on individual deposits, used in portfolio guarantee programs.
As reported, Ukraine’s public and state-guaranteed debt increased by $13.4 billion to $111.45 billion in 2022. In the first eight months of this year, the state debt increased by $21.47 billion, or 19.3%.
In the framework of the first revision of the EFF extended financing program with Ukraine at the end of June, the IMF significantly improved the forecast of the government debt growth this year – from 98.3% of GDP to 88.1% of GDP, including by revising its estimate for the end of last year from 81.7% of GDP to 78.5% of GDP.
Experts Club Research Project and Maxim Urakin recently released an analytical video about the economy of Ukraine and the world:
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Quotes of interbank currency market of Ukraine (UAH for $1, in 01.07.2023-31.07.2023)
Source: Open4Business.com.ua and experts.news
Benchmark oil prices are moving mixed near multi-month highs on Tuesday morning.
The price of November Brent futures on London’s ICE Futures exchange is at $88.87 a barrel by 8:29 a.m. Q2, down 13 cents (0.15%) from the previous session’s close. On Monday, these contracts rose by $0.45 (0.5%) to $89 per barrel.
Quotes of futures for WTI crude oil for October at the electronic trading of the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) by the specified time rose by 32 cents (0.37%) and amounted to $ 85.87 per barrel. On Monday, the main trades were not held due to a day off in the U.S. (Labor Day).
Prices are supported by expectations of the extension of production reduction measures by OPEC+ countries.
Saudi Arabia is also expected to extend the voluntary production cut by 1 million barrels per day for October.
At the same time, traders regard the signs of possible cooling of the American economy as a reason for the end of the cycle of interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, which also strengthens market optimism.
An additional positive factor is the news of an unexpected increase in activity in the manufacturing sector of the Chinese economy. The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) in China’s manufacturing sector in August hit its highest level since February, Caixin Media Co., which calculates the indicator, said on Friday. The index rose to 51 points from 49.2 in July. The consensus forecast, cited by Trading Economics, called for a rise to 49.3 points. A value above the 50-point mark indicates an increase in activity in the sector.
The situation with Ukrainian refugees is not improving, and a more active state policy is needed, says the Center for Economic Strategy (CES) in its report “Refugees from Ukraine: Intentions to Return, Impact on the Ukrainian Economy and Recommendations for State Policy.”
“According to different scenarios, from 1.3 million to 3.3 million Ukrainians may remain abroad. This is 0.4-0.6 million more than in the calculations for December 2022,” the document says.
According to CES estimates, as a result, the Ukrainian economy may lose 2.7% to 6.9% of GDP annually.
According to the researchers, the number of Ukrainians who have moved abroad is 5.6-6.7 million, which is 0.3-0.5 million, or 5% more than at the end of 2022.
“This was a result of the strikes on Ukraine’s power grid in the winter of 2022-23, the intensification of missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in May, and the explosion of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant in early June 2023,” the study says.
It is specified that 63% of refugees, according to a study by Info Sapiens commissioned by the CES, plan to return to Ukraine, but this share is falling.
“We are not sure that all of them will really return. First of all, the longer the war lasts, the more Ukrainians adapt to life abroad. In addition, some Ukrainians (6.8%) believe that the prospects for their children are better abroad,” the document says.
According to it, people with higher incomes before the war are more likely to return, while people with higher incomes now are less likely to return. In addition, students are one of the largest groups who would like to stay abroad.
It is noted that the majority of refugees are women (the largest share of women aged 35-49 is 18%) and children. Compared to 2022, the share of children has slightly decreased from 52% to 51%, with girls and boys being approximately equal among them.
Among adults, the proportion of men slightly increased from 17% in November 2022 to 22% in May 2023, in particular among people with temporary protection status in the EU – from 27% to 29%.
It is specified that the distribution of Ukrainian refugees by country of residence has also changed: the share of Poland has decreased from 42% to 29%, while the share of Germany has increased from 18% to 26%.
It is noted that a significant number of Ukrainian refugees lost most of their income after the start of the full-scale invasion, but as of May 2023, the economic situation of Ukrainian refugees abroad has improved: the share of those who have to save on food or have enough money for food has decreased from 40% to 35%.
The CES has identified four groups of refugees using cluster analysis. The first group (25% of all refugees) are classic refugees: mostly middle-aged women with children who have moved to Poland. They are not very adapted to life abroad, as 41% of Ukrainians in this group have never been abroad before. In addition, they mostly lived in settlements that were outside the combat zone but were subjected to rocket attacks (central and western Ukraine, as well as Odesa region). Accordingly, the main reason for going abroad was fear for their own safety.
The second group (29% of all refugees) are quasi-labor migrants who went abroad not only because of the war, but also for work. They are the most adapted to life abroad, as 25% of people in this group have already had experience working abroad. Also, for this group, external factors – both the hostilities and the policy of the Ukrainian state – will have the least impact on their decisions to return to Ukraine.
The third group (29% of all refugees) are professionals, people who mostly work in their specialty and are less willing to work outside of it. They often had their own business before the war. This group is more loyal to Ukraine and more often than others plans to return to Ukraine.
The fourth group (16% of all refugees) is people from the war zone, Ukrainians who suffered the most from the war. People from this segment are the most ready to take steps to adapt abroad. At the same time, they also express the greatest readiness to return to another region of Ukraine if it is impossible to return to their home region. Their decision to return will depend on the conditions created for this.
The National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) has opened access to the Unified state register of persons who have committed corruption or corruption-related offenses, the press service of the agency reports.
“With the beginning of a full-scale invasion, state bodies, including the NAPC, had to limit access to a number of registers, including the Unified state register of persons who committed corruption or corruption-related offenses … taking into account the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine “Some issues of ensuring the functioning of information and communication systems, electronic communication systems, public electronic registers under martial law” from 12.03.2022 ¹ 263″, – stated in the message published on the website
At the same time, the agency notes that there is significant public interest in opening the data of this Register.
“Lack of access to such information significantly complicates the activities of state bodies and other organizations, in particular when appointing applicants for relevant positions, public procurement and other transactions and the like,” the report stresses.
In addition, the Ministry of Defense gave a response to the NAPC about the absence of risks in case of restoration of access to the Register, however, provided that will not reflect information about the place of work, as well as the position at the time of committing a person of corruption or corruption-related offense.
In turn, the head of the agency, Alexander Novikov, noted that the open data of the Register is a powerful anti-corruption tool.
“The opening of the data of the Register of persons who committed corruption and corruption-related offenses, indicates that, taking into account the security aspects can be open and the data of the Register of declarations”, – said the head of the NAPC.
The agency expects the adoption by the Verkhovna Rada of the bill №9534, restoring the electronic declaration of the state of officials, which was suspended in connection with the introduction of martial law, the bill should also regulate the issue of public access to the data of the Register of declarations.
The Unified State Register of persons who have committed corruption and corruption-related offenses can be viewed at the link: https://corruptinfo.nazk.gov.ua.
The NACC reminds that this register contains information about all individuals and legal entities that have committed corruption offenses. In addition, in the register you can get a certificate on the presence or absence of information about yourself and the legal person to whom criminal law measures have been applied for a corruption offense.
The NAPC is the administrator of this registry since February 2019.
