On 6 February, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal met with Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Mathias Cormann. The discussion on further cooperation was also joined by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yuliia Svyrydenko, Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers Oleh Nemchinov, representatives of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the Ministry of Justice.

“Becoming a full member of the Organisation is one of our priorities. It is a sign of Ukraine’s readiness to join the EU and a signal to foreign companies that Ukraine is a promising country for investment,” said Denys Shmyhal.

The Prime Minister thanked Mathias Cormann for the approved OECD programme for Ukraine and stressed that despite the russian aggression, the Government had improved the functions of the state and demonstrated a high capacity to implement reforms. This, in turn, was noted by the Organisation.

“Our partners highlighted the progress made despite the war in areas such as public administration, digitalisation, anti-corruption and simplification of licensing procedures. The introduction of a graded salary system for civil servants was noted as an important step in public administration reform. We are continuing with the corporate reform,” said the Head of Government.

In addition, Denys Shmyhal called on the OECD to facilitate the development of international recommendations on the confiscation of such assets, as he is convinced that the frozen and confiscated assets of russia should become a key source for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

The Prime Minister thanked the OECD team for their strong international support and assistance in implementing reforms.