The war continues. The business that brings Ukrainian victory closer
The fall of the Ukraine's economy in 2022 was an unprecedented 30.4 percent, with consumer inflation standing at 26.6 percent, which means that the cost of goods and services in Ukraine has risen by an average of a quarter. A significant factor in the problems in the Ukrainian economy is also the attacks on energy facilities, which led to massive prolonged power outages, which all Ukrainians have had to face in the last five months.
The die is cast. Or how Ukrainian entrepreneurs are now holding the economic front
At the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, many foreign entrepreneurs decided to help. Among them, we can mention the head of the company SpaceX, billionaire Elon Musk, who announced on February 25, 2022, that Ukraine would receive the first Starlink, or the British founder of the Virgin Group, which includes approximately 400 different companies, including those in the IT field.
In connection with such important and multifaceted assistance from Western partners, Ukrainian businessmen have rallied and are working together as one team for the benefit of the country. According to many experts, one of the most important areas right now is the construction sector, as it directly affects the future of the country.
The construction sector as a key to Ukraine's happy future
Despite the difficult situation in this industry, thanks to Ukrainian entrepreneurs, 185 out of 221 active sites at the beginning of the year (83.7%) were up and running as of November 2022. In the region, 77.5% of construction sites (204 out of 263) resumed operation.
Among them, we can mention the former mayor of Irpin, who after the de-occupation of Kyiv region began to invest money in the reconstruction of the city, the owners of the "Epicenter-K" hypermarkets, who thanks to well-established logistic networks continuously supplied products and humanitarian aid, also carried out the evacuation of their employees' families from hotspots, or businesswoman and philanthropist Vlada Molchanova, who is the founder of Stolitsa Group — one of the largest developer companies in Kyiv.
Vlada's company is known beyond the borders of Ukraine, as it collaborates with international organizations. For six years, Stolitsa Group built the Retroville shopping center with loan funds from the Polish state bank, Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego. In the spring of 2022, the Russians launched a missile strike on the center. Fortunately, Retroville is quite strong and large, and therefore was able to mostly survive, but unfortunately, at least eight people died there, including center employees. After that, Molchanova and other investors decided to restore it. In two and a half months, part of the shopping center was rebuilt and opened for Kyiv residents. This missile attack made the war almost personal for Vlada.
Molchanova herself is a graduate of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, with a degree in "Biophysics", but from her student years, she became interested in architecture and urban planning. In 2004, she and her business partner created the Stolitsa Group. Vlada and her family stayed in Kyiv from the beginning of the full-scale invasion. Since then, a new stage has begun in her life, in which charity has become a priority. Her foundation actively supports ordinary Kyiv residents, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and many other military structures.
By the way, Western experts are quite optimistic about Ukraine and its business environment and believe that thanks to such entrepreneurial activity, Ukrainian construction will have good prospects and will be able to deepen cooperation at the international level over the next 10 years.
Post-war recovery development fund. Business investing in Ukraine without waiting for victory.
Since the beginning of the full-scale RF invasion, the whole world has been inspired by the strength and unity of the Ukrainian people, so it is not surprising that some investors have become interested in rebuilding Ukraine without waiting for victory. In connection with this, at the beginning of May, it became known about the launch of the national financial development institution – the Country Development Fund.
The Ministry of Economy has appointed a consulting group from the company BlackRock, which will provide free advice to the government on the launch of this project. After this appointment was agreed with the President of Ukraine. Zelensky emphasized that the launch of the fund will strengthen the investment climate and allow the start of active economic recovery and the construction of new businesses. The government noted that state and private capital will be involved in the reconstruction initiative.
