Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Mathias Cormann, and UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly launched the OECD Programme for Ukraine as part of the initial dialogue on Ukraine’s accession to the Organisation.

The signing took place on 7 June during the OECD Ministerial Council meeting in Paris. The Prime Minister of Ukraine joined the event online.

According to the Prime Minister, the Programme will support reforms, reconstruction and recovery of Ukraine, and its implementation will pave the way for the Roadmap for membership of the Organisation.

“I am convinced that fruitful cooperation between Ukraine and the OECD will make a significant contribution to the transformation of our country. I am grateful to our partners for their unwavering support,” said Denys Shmyhal.

The Head of Ukrainian Government noted that over the past six months, Ukraine had made significant progress in deepening its cooperation with the OECD. In February, Ukraine joined the OECD Working Group on Bribery, and in March, the OECD-Ukraine Liaison Office was opened in Kyiv.

“We expect to join the OECD as a full member in the foreseeable future. This will mean new investment projects, new foreign companies on the Ukrainian market and a better standard of living,” the Prime Minister of Ukraine said.

OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann noted that the Programme would help bring Ukraine closer to the Organisation’s standards and would also support Ukraine’s accession to the EU. According to him, the implementation of the Programme will be coordinated on the ground in Kyiv by a specialised team at the OECD-Ukraine Liaison Office.