Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

Japan is interested in supporting Ukraine’s agricultural sector and training veterans

Japanese partners have confirmed their interest in projects to support Ukraine’s agricultural sector and train veterans, and the respective teams of the two countries are working together to find ways to implement these intentions, said Vitaliy Koval, chairman of the State Property Fund, following the visit of a Ukrainian delegation led by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to the Conference on Economic Development and Reconstruction in Tokyo.

According to a release from the Fund, its head spoke about the key areas of the agency’s work, investment proposals for Japanese business, and new projects of the SPFU team – work with sanctioned property and the Land Bank, which is scheduled to be launched at the end of this year.

Regarding the latter project, the head of the Fund had a separate meeting with representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan, as the SPFU manages 386 thousand hectares of agricultural land, which should work for the Ukrainian economy and bring profit to the state budget.

According to Koval, the meeting discussed attracting Japanese investors to the Ukrainian agricultural sector, in particular, the use of their equipment, as the need of Ukrainian farmers for mechanized machinery with a capacity of up to 200 hp is very high, and the world leaders in the production of such equipment are concentrated in Japan.

“Ukragroleasing can become their partner here. The company is managed by the SPFU and can help with leasing equipment,” said the head of the Fund.

He also called on foreign partners to pay attention to one of the most important areas of work for the whole country – retraining and training of veterans, which is the management and maintenance of agricultural machinery.

Koval said that the State Property Fund has the capabilities to assist in training: it can be conducted at the SPFU’s training centers, and such facilities will become training centers for operators and service engineers for Japanese agricultural machinery.

As reported, during the visit, the Ukrainian delegation signed 56 documents related to cooperation in many sectors of the economy of the two countries.

,

Ukraine and Japan signed 56 documents on cooperation

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal says that Ukraine and Japan have signed 56 intergovernmental agreements, memorandums, and arrangements between businesses and local authorities at the Economic Development and Recovery Conference.

“56 documents were signed by representatives of Ukraine and Japan at the Economic Development and Recovery Conference in Tokyo! Among them are intergovernmental agreements, memoranda, and agreements between businesses and local authorities,” Shmyhal wrote on his Telegram channel.

In particular, an intergovernmental convention on the avoidance of double taxation was signed; more than a dozen agreements to support Ukraine’s recovery with powerful Japanese organizations (JICA, JETRO, the NEXI Export Credit Agency and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation); grant agreements for the implementation of recovery programs, as well as a number of documents between the Ministry of Agrarian Policy of Ukraine and Japanese companies providing Ukraine with various agricultural machinery and equipment; an intergovernmental memorandum on supporting Ukraine’s recovery with the

“Naftogaz agreed on a wind energy project; the Ukrainian gas transportation system operator signed a memorandum on preparations for the modernization of gas compressor stations. According to the Prime Minister, documents were also signed in the fields of energy, telecommunications, infrastructure construction, and ecology.

“Japan has already shown leadership in financial support for Ukraine. Now Japan should become one of the leaders of Ukraine’s recovery and investment in our economy,” Shmyhal summarized.

, , ,

Japan plans to give Ukraine more than $100 mln for reconstruction

Japan plans to donate 15.8 billion yen (about $106 million) to Ukraine for the country’s post-war reconstruction, particularly in the areas of demining, agriculture, bio- and information technology, Kyodo News reports.

“Japan will pledge 15.8 billion yen ($106 million) to help rebuild Ukraine after war damage in seven areas, such as infrastructure reconstruction and demining,” the agency wrote on Sunday, citing sources familiar with the situation.

It is expected that “at the Japan-Ukraine Conference on Promoting Economic Reconstruction to be held on February 19 in Tokyo, the two governments will agree on Japan’s participation in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine and sign more than 10 memorandums of cooperation.”

The conference will be attended by the prime ministers of the two countries, Fumio Kishida and Denys Shmyhal, as well as representatives of industry and business.

According to the agency, the aid “will be used to provide demining equipment and temporary bridges, as well as other resources urgently needed to help rebuild the war-torn country… The seven areas of cooperation also include agriculture, humanitarian relief, biotechnology and industrial development, information technology, as well as governance and anti-corruption measures.”

,

Ukraine receives $390 mln from Japan under World Bank projects

Ukraine’s state budget has received about $390 million from Japan as part of World Bank projects aimed at social protection and agricultural recovery, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

According to the report, Japan’s financial assistance in January consists of a $89.8 million grant under the Emergency Project for Inclusive Support for Ukraine’s Agricultural Recovery (ARISE) and a $300 million loan under the Investing in Social Protection to Improve Coverage, Resilience, and Efficiency (INSPIRE) project.

“I am grateful to the World Bank and the Government of Japan for their strong financial support for Ukraine. The funds raised will be used to reimburse the expenditures of the state budget of Ukraine for priority needs, in particular in the field of recovery and social assistance,” Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko said in a release.

The Ministry of Finance reminded that the INSPIRE project is funded by a $1.2 billion loan from the World Bank from the Trust Fund for the Provision of Necessary Credit Support to Ukraine (ADVANCE Ukraine) with the support of the Government of Japan and aims to ensure social protection of vulnerable populations during and after the war, as well as to strengthen the adaptability of the social support system to effectively respond to current and future challenges.

The ARISE project aims to support agricultural producers’ access to finance through concessional lending and grants.

,

Japan acquires large-sized equipment for Ukraine as part of support for energy sector

Japan has purchased large-sized equipment for Ukraine with a total capacity of about 200 MW, including 5 gas turbines and 7 large transformers, as part of its support for the energy sector.

The announcement was made during a meeting in Kyiv on Sunday between Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa. The equipment was purchased and delivered by the Japanese government in cooperation with UNDP and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency Jica.

“This is very important equipment. Some of it is still on the way, but two autotransformers have already been installed, and now we are talking about two more similar ones, as well as five gas turbine units and seven large transformers. We are talking about decentralization of the power system and an additional 200 MW of capacity,” Galushchenko said at a briefing after the meeting.

According to him, the equipment provided by Japan will be distributed throughout the country.

“This fully coincides with the goals of our national energy strategy aimed at decentralizing the energy sector,” the minister added.

In her speech, Yoko Kamikawa categorically condemned Russia’s ongoing attacks on civilian objects and the population and assured of full support for Ukraine.

“It is very important to support Ukrainians to protect them this winter. The equipment that Ukraine receives from us will benefit about 5 million of its citizens,” she said.

, ,

Ukraine receives $950 mln from Japan for recovery and social protection

Ukraine’s state budget has received about $950 million from Japan as part of World Bank projects for recovery and social protection, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.

“The financing consists of a $52.4 million grant from Japan under the Housing Opportunities for People’s Empowerment (HOPE) project and a $900 million loan from the Japanese government through the Investing in Social Protection for Improved Reach, Resilience, and Efficiency (INSPIRE) project,” the release said.

According to the release, the funds will be used to reimburse the state budget of Ukraine for urgent and priority needs, in particular in the field of recovery and social assistance.

The INSPIRE project is funded by a $1.2 billion loan from the World Bank’s Trust Fund for the Provision of Necessary Credit Support to Ukraine (ADVANCE Ukraine), with support from the Government of Japan, and aims to provide social protection to vulnerable populations during and after the war, improve access to social assistance and social services, and strengthen the adaptability of the social support system to effectively respond to current and future challenges.

The HOPE project aims to restore infrastructure in the combat-affected areas, de-occupied and affected regions of Ukraine. Funds will also be provided to homeowners for repairs in multi-family and private homes that have sustained moderate damage and do not require major repairs. The project will support policy reforms at the national level to improve recovery outcomes and alignment with Ukraine’s European integration goals.

On December 19, Finance Minister Sergiy Marchenko said that since the beginning of this year, Ukraine has managed to attract more than $39 billion in external financing, compared to $32.1 billion for the entire last year, and by the end of the year this amount will reach about $42.3 billion.

In particular, on December 20, Ukraine received a grant of EUR 150 million from the EU, and on Thursday – EUR 1.5 billion of the last tranche of the EU’s macro-financial assistance this year.

, ,