The EU intends to provide Ukraine with EUR 20 million of financial support for the digital transformation development, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov said.
“EUR 9.6 million is the first financial contribution that Ukraine will receive under the EU4DigitalUA project. The Estonia’s e-Governance Academy and the Spanish foundation FIIAPP Spain will help in the implementation of projects on electronic services, cybersecurity, data protection, and the development of registries,” Fedorov wrote on the Facebook.
He wrote that funding will also cover: development of infrastructure for electronic government; modernization of public e-services and development of services on the Diia (Action) portal and in the Dia app; visualization of information about access to broadband Internet in Ukraine; further connection of the main registers to the Trembita data exchange system; development of a national personal identifier, a state digital identity card and a register registration addresses of citizens; development of trust services.
“Support of digitalization in Ukraine is at the same time support of all key reforms and anti-corruption. The country will receive more qualitative changes. We are grateful to the EU for their trust and we act together,” Fedorov wrote.
The number of requests from Lithuanian enterprises for business development in Ukraine, search for new partners has increased, Ambassador of Lithuania to Ukraine Valdemaras Sarapinas has said.
“From our own experience, we can say that now we see an increase in requests from Lithuanian enterprises for business development in Ukraine, searching for new partners. By the way, the same can be said about Ukrainian enterprises. We observe especially great potential in the introduction of electronic services, as Lithuania has vast experience in this area and is ready to share it with Ukraine,” Sarapinas told Interfax-Ukraine.
He also said that a reduction in the supply chain can also reveal new opportunities for both Lithuania and Ukraine.
“Lithuania can also become an excellent platform from which Ukrainian enterprises can significantly increase their exports to the West. By way of example, I can cite Kormotech company, which moved part of its activities to Lithuania, and this made it possible to take advantage of the EU financial policy and increase its competitiveness in Europe and other markets,” the diplomat said.
At the same time, Sarapinas said that Lithuanian business in Ukraine is faced with such problems as non-transparency of the judicial system, unequal conditions of competition, and administrative pressure on business.
“I am not a businessman, so I can only convey the position that I hear when communicating with our entrepreneurs: Lithuanian business, as, by the way, investors from other foreign countries or local Ukrainian entrepreneurs face the same problems, namely, the lack of transparency of the judicial system, different conditions of competition, administrative pressure on business. In the area of combating these problems, Lithuania and other Western partners are ready to share their experience,” he said.
The ambassador also said that there are several large Lithuanian companies that are now planning investment projects in Ukraine, however, negotiations are underway on this matter.
“It was recently announced that the Novus retail chain, which is operated by the BT Invest investment company, is buying 35 Billa stores. This is the fairly large investment: according to market analysts, the deal is worth about EUR 65 million. There are also few more large Lithuanian companies that are now planning investment projects in Ukraine, however, now it would be better to refrain from commenting, since negotiations are underway,” he said.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has supported the development of a government targeted program of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy for the development of folk arts and crafts for 2021-2025.
The decision was made at a government meeting on Wednesday.
“Although the craft was and remains the hallmark of Ukraine, today it is in a state of decline and gradual oblivion. The number of craftsmen and organizations is decreasing. Rare artistic techniques and technologies are in danger of extinction. Therefore, folk arts and crafts will exist,” Minister of Culture and Information Policy Oleksandr Tkachenko wrote on his Telegram channel.
According to him, thanks to this program, the authorities are trying to: preserve and transfer the knowledge of the masters; reboot the perception of products and services domestically through marketing and communications; increase the capitalization of brands of folk crafts and their export potential; and set up competent distribution and logistics of goods.
“Folk arts and crafts are one of the most important authentic branches of our culture and, at the same time, a promising sector of creative industries. Behind it is the creation of added value and new jobs,” the minister said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky signed law No. 910-IX on amendments to certain laws of Ukraine concerning the promotion of physical culture and sports, the presidential press service said.
“The document is aimed at supporting and developing the sphere of physical culture and sports. The law provides for the granting of the right to lease state-owned and municipal property without an auction to state-owned and municipal sports clubs, youth sports schools, schools of higher sports skills, Olympic training centers, physical culture and health-improving facilities, centers of physical health of the population, centers of physical culture and sports for persons with disabilities, as well as bases of Olympic, Paralympic and Deflympic training,” the presidential press service said.
In addition, the document coordinates the terminology of the current legislation in the field of physical culture and sports with the law of Ukraine on education, in particular, the term “teaching establishment” has been replaced by the term “educational institution.”
The law comes into force one month after the date of its publication.
Ukraine ranks 30th in the Integrated Index for Postal Development 2020 (2IPD) among 170 countries in terms of the level of postal development.
The rating is published on the website of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), which compiles it.
The top 30 also includes: Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Japan, France, USA, Great Britain, Canada, Singapore, Italy, Belgium, Poland, New Zealand, Ireland, Czech Republic, Australia, China, Russia, Belarus, Slovakia, Portugal, Korea, Sweden, Estonia, Moldova, Thailand, Finland, and Serbia.
The rating was compiled based on criteria for assessing the reliability, reach, relevance, as well as resilience to external and internal shocks of postal companies.
CEO of JSC Ukrposhta Igor Smelyansky said on his Facebook page on Monday, Ukraine entered the top 30 for the first time.
Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Vladyslav Krykliy and Minister of Transport and Construction of the Slovak Republic Andrej Doležal signed a memorandum of cooperation within the Silk Road Economic Belt.
The press service of the Infrastructure Ministry said on Thursday that the document will contribute to creating conditions for the further development of multimodal transport in transfer between Asia and the EU through Ukraine and Slovakia, as well as for increasing the number of container block trains that will be used for combined freight transport; putting into practice the implementation of the project on the creation of multimodal logistics centers that will handle cargo on the Silk Road route, which will make it possible to form an appropriate bilateral working group and create a basis for negotiations with the Chinese side; developing a common approach to organizing the movement of container trains running between Asia and the EU through Ukraine and Slovakia.
“Both Ukraine and Slovakia are extremely interested in developing their transit potential and improving the processes of organizing the delivery of goods in containers from the EU countries to China and vice versa. In early September, we held consultations with the Slovak side to intensify cooperation in the development of the Silk Road through the territory of Ukraine and Slovakia. Today we are fixing them with the relevant memorandum,” the press service said, citing Vladyslav Krykliy.
The ministry said that the memorandum has been drawn up for an indefinite period and will enter into force on Thursday, September 24.
In addition, according to the ministry, during a meeting with the Slovak side, the Minister of Infrastructure confirmed the readiness to intensify the work of the Ukrainian and Slovak sides on the development of logistics terminals in Chop, Mukacheve and Košice and proposed a joint search for financial resources for the implementation of the Creation of Multimodal Logistics Center Between Ukraine and Slovakia Based on the Existing Terminal in Chop project.
