Oleksandr Kubrakov will head the Ministry of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development, which is to be established by the merger of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development. The relevant decision was adopted today by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal while congratulating Oleksandr Kubrakov on his appointment as Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine – Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine noted that infrastructure and regional development will be among the areas of Minister’s responsibility, which will allow for a more systematic approach to planning the process of restoration of Ukraine.

“The position of the Deputy Prime Minister is an important signal to both the society and our partners that restoration is our priority today, and that the reconstruction must begin right now. The merger of the Ministries of Infrastructure and Communities and Territories Development will also allow for better coordination in the reconstruction of war-affected regions and getting through the most difficult winter in our history,” said Denys Shmyhal, adding that Oleksandr Kubrakov had served as Minister of Infrastructure in the Government for 1.5 years and has a thorough understanding of the current and future challenges.

“The merger of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development is aimed at achieving one key goal – to increase efficiency of the executive branch in the issues of reconstruction management.

The combined Ministry of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development will have a better understanding of the overall picture of destruction and the need for recovery, which in turn will significantly improve digital management of the reconstruction. It is important that communities understand what is happening with the recovery and know that their opinion is taken into account and their voice is heard.

Another important area of our work is the completion of previously initiated reforms in the construction sector. Together with MPs and other ministries, we are already working on initiatives to digitalize construction processes, decentralize urban planning and strengthen responsibility for violations.

It is a great honor for me to be a part of the President’s team, to help our army, our people, our country in the most difficult times in its history,” Oleksandr Kubrakov commented.

According to the Minister, other priorities will be the completion of the decentralization reform and implementation of the energy efficiency policy.

As for the transport sector, the existing course will be maintained towards effective and transparent restoration of what has been destroyed, development of logistics for Ukrainian exporters and finding models for investment in infrastructure projects in the railway, road and port sectors, as well as in the aviation and postal industries.