Deputy Minister of Finance of Ukraine Olga Zykova and Government Commissioner for Public Debt Management Yuriy Butsa met with Director General of Middle East and European Department Hideki Matsunaga and other representatives of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The parties discussed the current state of Ukraine’s economy and financial system, the macro forecast and the needs of the state budget for the following year. Special attention was paid to the discussion of three components of assistance to Ukraine from the JICA in 2023:

1. Further support for the functioning of the Government of Ukraine through the provision of direct budget funding;

2. Social and humanitarian assistance to citizens of Ukraine displaced by the full-scale invasion of the russian federation and neighboring host countries (Moldova and Poland), and ongoing support of Ukrainian refugees in Japan by JICA branch offices jointly with local authorities;

3. Preparation of a plan to help Ukraine in recovery and reconstruction, particularly, through remote assessment of damage using satellite images to obtain information on the necessary assistance; cooperation with Japanese local authorities; extension of support for preparation for the winter period; potential expansion of the list of JICA projects. 

“We are grateful for the steadfast support of the Government of Japan and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and look forward to Japan's leadership at the international level in further support of Ukraine, especially considering Japan's chairmanship of the G7 group in 2023. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, our Government has been able to provide all priority social expenditures of the state budget, in particular, due to the help of partner countries and international financial institutions,” said Olga Zykova.

During the meeting, the Deputy Minister of Finance also emphasized the need for a stable and rhythmic inflow of funds from international partners to finance the state budget deficit, which will amount to USD 38 billion the following year, namely from USD 3 to 3.5 billion every month.

It should be noted that since the beginning of the full-scale war, Ukraine has received about USD 600 million of preferential loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to finance priority social expenditures of the state budget.