Economic resilience is one of the key elements in ensuring the resilience of the state against external and internal challenges. A strong defence sector, a flexible and diversified economy, a developed agro-processing complex and ample opportunities for human capital development are the guarantees of our and Europe’s security.

This opinion was expressed by Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine, during an online speech at the 15th session of the European Economic Congress, which is taking place in Katowice, Poland, on April 24-26.

This year’s European Economic Congress will focus on current trends shaping the prospects for future economic growth and the social and political environment. The business programme includes discussions on the war in Ukraine, Ukraine’s support and recovery, global conflicts, the impact of the economy on climate and the environment, and green transformation.

“For Ukraine, the EU candidate status was a strong signal of the European community’s solidarity with our struggle for independence and territorial integrity. A new system of international security is impossible without Ukraine. And in this context, Ukraine’s resilience is the basis for strengthening Europe’s resilience in the years to come. To ensure our and Europe’s security, Ukraine must have a sustainable, strong economy. To achieve this, we need to implement reforms to bring about structural changes in the economy,” said Yuliia Svyrydenko.

The First Deputy Prime Minister noted that the Government of Ukraine had set itself an ambitious goal – to pave the way from candidate to full EU member as soon as possible. This includes ensuring full integration into the EU’s single market even before accession.

Ukraine’s new economic model should also be based on five components. These are energy independence, development of the defence industry and strengthening of the army, Ukraine’s status as a guarantor of global food security, humanitarian demining, and development of the IT industry and human capital.

Yuliia Svyrydenko stressed that Ukraine must quickly and thoroughly demine the war-torn areas, which cover some 174,000 square kilometres. Ukraine is open to investment and business development in this sector. This is also an investment in the security of Europe. Clearing the Ukrainian land of the consequences of war is also important in the context of global food security, of which Ukraine wants to remain a guarantor in the future.

For reference

The European Economic Congress is one of the largest economic events in Central Europe, held in the Polish city of Katowice. The event is attended by politicians from the EU and other countries, representatives of economic ministries of governments of various countries, as well as an international group of investors and entrepreneurs representing various sectors of the economy.