Ukraine

Ukraine

The current situation

Ukraine is one of the least developed countries in Europe and ranks last in the ranking of GDP per capita (ahead of Moldova and Kosovo in 2020). According to the 2020 Human Development Index, it ranked 74th out of 189 countries.  In 2020, the Ukrainian economy was negatively affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and GDP decreased by 3.9%. The most affected sectors include tourism and services, followed by energy, transport, etc. Unemployment has increased to 9.7% during 2020, with millions of Ukrainian citizens working abroad, mainly in Poland, Russia, the Czech Republic and other countries. Ukraine has been struggling with a large debt burden for several years, with public debt growing slightly and reaching 67.7% of GDP. Foreign direct investment in Ukraine was negatively affected by the strengthening of “market uncertainty” in 2020. The most economically developed regions in Ukraine include in particular Kyiv and Kyiv oblast, as well as Dnipropetrovsk region, Kharkiv region, Odessa region and Lviv region [source: Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ukraine].

In September 2017, the Association Agreement entered into force and became the new primary contractual document between the European Union and Ukraine. It includes the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area Agreement, which aims to link the two markets and promote diversification and increase the competitiveness of Ukrainian exports and the economy as a whole.

The Czech Republic provides humanitarian assistance, development and transition cooperation to Ukraine. These activities have been expanded especially after 2014, when the Government of the Czech Republic, by Resolution No. 167/2014, released funds to provide emergency assistance to Ukraine for the reconstruction and support of its democratic transition in the period 2014-2016. This exceptional assistance continues to this day. Ukraine is thus one of the specific countries of the Czech Republic’s Foreign Development Assistance.

Activities of the CzDA

In 2022, the last activities of the program “Modernization of the Public Education System in Ukraine II” are being finalized, including the newly identified sub-program “Support to Ukrainian Medical Universities/Faculties”.

In the context of the current military conflict in Ukraine, it is foreseeable that the CzDA’s activities in Ukraine will be strengthened in the future, in the next waves of the Czech Republic’s official assistance to Ukraine.