Kyiv, 7 February 2025 – Institutional support for Ukraine’s foreign trade and strategies to enhance regional economic growth were in focus at the “Export Strategy and Regional Economic Development: Institutional Capacity for Implementation,” held in Kyiv this week.

The conference was organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and German federal aid company Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, and with the aid of funding from the Government of Japan. It brought together government officials, businesses, international organizations, and NGOs to discuss the country's export strategy and its integration with regional economic development programmes.

The work at the conference will also go towards the creation of a National Export Strategy for Ukraine that effectively links national and regional policies.

The event highlighted the crucial role of international partners, the government, and the private sector in fostering Ukraine's export potential – particularly for small and medium-sized businesses.

Speaking at the conference, Oleksandr Palazov, director of the Department of Regulatory Policy and Entrepreneurship at the Ukrainian Ministry of Economy, pointed to the key role played by entrepreneur support offices under the “Made in Ukraine” initiative. “(These offices) are key to boosting small and medium-sized businesses' export potential,” Palazon said. “They offer financial resources, consulting, digitalization assistance, and help accessing international markets. This helps businesses grow and adapt, strengthening Ukraine's regional economy and export potential."

Hagen Ettner, director of the ReACT4UA/Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Programme, noted: "We've worked extensively to help Ukrainian small and medium-sized enterprises leverage the opportunities of the EU Association Agreement. This included developing the national export strategy and directly supporting businesses through grants and intermediaries. Our new 'Step into the EU' programme will continue this, focusing on practical reforms to improve the business environment."

Maria Gutsman, head of the Inclusive Development, Recovery and Peacebuilding Project Group at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine, said: "This conference is timely and crucial. For UNDP, dialogue and broad participation are essential to develop an effective export strategy that meets Ukraine's needs and anticipates challenges. Inclusive economic growth remains our priority."

Background

The conference was organized by the "Reform Support Fund in Ukraine" Public Union as part of the "Transformational Recovery for Human Security in Ukraine" project, which has financial support from the Government of Japan. The project is implemented by UNDP in Ukraine in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and the ReACT4UA international cooperation project "Application and implementation of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement in the field of trade.” The executor of the project is the German federal international aid company Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.

Media Inquiries

Yuliia Samus, UNDP Ukraine Communications Team Leader, yuliia.samus@undp.org