Business news from Ukraine

Amid full-scale aggression by the Russian Federation, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has decided not to disclose statistical data on the population, as this information is sensitive both in terms of assessing the country’s defense capabilities and mobilization potential, and in terms of allowing the enemy to better identify vulnerabilities in infrastructure and social infrastructure and potentially use this data for information and psychological special operations, said Arsen Makarchuk, head of the State Statistics Service

“Under martial law, the government has currently decided not to disclose this data, but we hope that a certain consensus will be reached—for example, regarding the disclosure of this data at the national level, but not at the regional level. We really want to strike a balance between the sensitivity of this information and the public interest and need for its disclosure,” he said in an interview with the “Interfax-Ukraine” news agency.

Makarchuk expressed his personal view that up-to-date demographic data is needed not only to satisfy public interest but also for planning government activities, communicating with international partners, and business operations.

“We had a discussion with mobile operators a few weeks ago; according to licensing requirements, they must provide coverage for settlements with a population of over 2,000 people. But the question arises: as of what date should the population estimate be taken?” he gave as an example.

The expert noted that Ukraine’s classification into one category of countries or another also depends on the population estimate, since GDP per capita is a very common indicator for such classification. This applies both to eligibility for certain international aid projects and to calculations of countries’ contributions to specific international organizations, he added.

As reported, on the evening of November 11, the Cabinet of Ministers accepted Makarchuk’s resignation.

The dashboard “Key Indicators of Ukraine’s Socio-Economic Development,” published by the State Statistics Service last week, still lists the estimated current population as of January 1, 2022, at 41,167,340.

Ella Libanova, director of the Ptukha Institute of Demography and Quality of Life Research at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, stated this past summer that a joint estimate by the State Statistics Service and the Institute of Demography put the figure at 29 million, plus or minus 300,000–500,000, based on data from three leading mobile operators and various government registries.

The last nationwide census in Ukraine took place in December 2001. According to its results, the total population was 48,457,000 people.

Source: https://interfax.com.ua/news/interview/1235343.html