The forced migration of Ukrainians during the war and paving the way for their return home was the topic raised by Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine, during a strategic session “Exploring the Crisis: Integrating Refugees into Labour Markets” in Davos.

One of the main problems of modern Ukraine is the mass migration of people caused by war, both within the country and abroad. And for all of them, the issue of finding a job is an urgent one. The government is trying to stimulate business as much as possible to create new jobs for internally displaced persons.

“We have 7 million internally displaced persons for whom the issue of labour is extremely relevant. In times of war and economic decline, it is important for us to help people who have been forced to leave their homes to live in dignity. To do this, we try to encourage people to settle down and be economically active.

Another 4.6 million of our citizens left Ukraine last year. We appreciate the openness of the neighboring countries that gave them shelter and jobs. Temporary protection granted to Ukrainians helped them to be economically active in these tragic times,” said Yuliia Svyrydenko.

According to the First Deputy Prime Minister, this example is a clear success for global refugee policy. In general, according to the European Central Bank, the rate of employment of Ukrainian refugees of working age will be up to 55% in the medium term.

“The highest employment rate of Ukrainians is in Poland, where almost half of the 1.2 million have found job. In Germany, the share of employed migrants is lower. In June, less than 10% were employed. As host countries face a structural labour shortage, Ukrainian refugees can help increase the amount of labour needed to develop their economies,” said Yuliia Svyrydenko.

Yet, according to the First Deputy Prime Minister, the main task in the future is to give them an opportunity to return to Ukraine and help develop the Ukrainian economy by creating new jobs in Ukraine.

“Even if Ukrainians are good at integrating into the labour market, the pressure on social infrastructure in host countries remains very high. Therefore, for the common good, it will be necessary to help them return to Ukraine. And the majority of Ukrainians have expressed a strong desire to return as soon as possible,” summarized Svyrydenko.

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According to the United Nations, 87% of migrants from Ukraine are women with children, 65% of them are of working age (18 to 59 year old) and almost 70% have higher education.