Kyiv School of Economics is actively engaged in the work on the Ukraine Plan for the implementation of the Ukraine Facility program. Last week saw the inaugural meeting of the sectoral working group focused on IT and communications. The group operates in conjunction with the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, with oversight by the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and analytical consultation from KSE and EY Ukraine.

Creation of the sectoral working groups is one of the activities of the Good Governance Fund Project “Economic Hub: Sound PFM Policies and Vision for Growth,” which is supported by UK Aid from the UK Government. The project delivery partners are Abt Britain and Kyiv School of Economics.

Discussion participants included representatives from the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, and Kyiv School of Economics, moderated by EY Ukraine.

“Our main goal is to develop a Plan that will help Ukraine grow faster than in the basic trend. To do this, priority sectors, strategies for their development and reforms necessary for the rapid growth of the sector are identified. From the group members, we expect to receive proposals that important changes need to be implemented in the next 4 years for the successful development of the IT industry,” said Oleksiy Sobolev, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine for Digital Development, Digital Transformations and Digitalization, in his opening speech.

Maksym Fedoseienko, head of strategic projects at KSE Institute, pointed out the organizational aspects of the work of the sectoral group, and also outlined the tasks for further discussions, in particular, business proposals for potential changes in the industry.

During the discussions, the meeting participants identified the main components of the IT market and formats for attracting investments in the development of the industry, as well as analyzed the problems of the industry and possible ways to overcome them through legislative changes, in particular, the regulatory framework.

Representatives of the Government and business discussed institutional and investment initiatives for the development of the sphere, military risks for the industry, expanding the export of IT services, the development of new markets by national IT companies and the use of the practices of the United States, Israel, Estonia and other European countries to develop innovations in Ukraine.

The members of the working group noted the role of the IT sector in the development of technological ecosystems and the digitalization of sectors of the Ukrainian economy.

“The IT industry of Ukraine had a huge potential for a full-scale invasion and, in spite of everything, retains it today. We are convinced that IT will be the driver of Ukraine’s recovery after the victory. International support and our active joint work with the industry will significantly speed up this process,” says Nataliia Denikeieva, Director of the IT Industry Development Directorate of the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.

Additionally, the discussion underscored finance accessibility, production localization, market participants’ payment capacity enhancement, potential legislative and regulatory alterations, and fostering R&D infrastructure in Ukraine.

The first stage of sectoral working group collaboration with businesses will continue until October 2023. During this period, proposals for the Ukraine Plan, essential for the implementation of the Ukraine Facility financial assistance program, will be formulated. The program will provide Ukraine with 50 billion euros from the European Commission during 2024-2027.