Denys Shmyhal: It is crucial for Ukraine to demonstrate economic recovery, as it is a message to investors that it will be profitable to invest in the Ukrainian economy

Over the past week, three important events have taken place that will have consequences in the medium and long term for the stability, victory and European future of Ukraine. This was stated by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal during a Government meeting on November 14.

"The first event is the historic decision of the European Commission that Ukraine is ready to start pre-accession negotiations on EU membership. The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen emphasised the progress in the implementation of reforms, noting that during a full-scale war the dynamics of changes is particularly impressive," said Denys Shmyhal.

The Prime Minister stressed that Ukraine would continue to move along the path of transformation. The Government is drafting bills and decisions.

"The second important event is the adoption of the state budget. Despite the severe consequences of the war, we are optimistic about the future. This year, Ukraine's GDP will grow by more than 4%, and next year we are planning for 4.6% growth. This is taking into account the risks of wartime," the Prime Minister said.

Denys Shmyhal noted that the forecasts correlated with the estimates of international financial institutions. In particular, the IMF notes the resilience of the Ukrainian economy and forecasts its growth in 2023 and 2024.

"The third important event is the result of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund on the revision of the financing programme. We have an agreement at the level of experts, and we expect a positive decision of the IMF Executive Board to further allocate a tranche of USD 900 million," the Prime Minister said.

According to the Head of Government, it is crucial for Ukraine to demonstrate economic recovery, as it is a message to our partners that their support yields concrete results, as well as a signal to domestic and foreign investors that investing in the Ukrainian economy is profitable and promising.