At a round table in Kiev on 12 December Robert Kirchner, Deputy Team Leader of the German Advisory Group Ukraine, and David Saha, Consultant, presented the updated study on “Unlocking investment through reforms: Proposals from German business in Ukraine”. The event was part of a round table organized in cooperation with the German-Ukrainian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK). Yulia Svyrydenko, Vice Minister in the Ukrainian Ministry of Economics, who among others participated in the event, was very interested in the results of the study.

On November 13, 2019, a round table on “Labor Migration from Ukraine” took place in Kyiv at the Kyiv School of Economics, jointly organized by Yuliia Mincheva, VoxConnector Editor of Vox Ukraine and the German Advisory Group. In an informal setting, around 20 representatives from think tanks, government agencies and the media met to discuss the issue of labour miration.

Ukraine returns to growth after the severe economic crisis of 2014/15. To sustainably increase economic growth, reforms and investments are urgently needed. This is the conclusion of a study by the German Advisory Group Ukraine in cooperation with the German-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (“AHK Ukraine”) released in September 2018.

On August 29, the German Advisory Group and the Reforms Delivery Office, an advisory body to the Cabinet of Ministers, hosted a joint seminar on the topic: ” Industry 4.0 – Overview and Policy Implications”.

Dr. Philip Steden introduced the specialized audience to the basic features and components of Industry 4.0 – the so called forth industrial revolution – and illustrated possible fields of application and advantages of Industry 4.0 technologies with examples from Germany.

The German Advisory Group Ukraine hosts a biannual event to report about current economic policy topics in our advisory work.

The event took place on July 4th in the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. Using this format we aim to provide an opportunity for representatives of German institutions to get background information about current economic developments.

Workshop held by Centre for Economic Strategy and German Advisory Group on Central Bank Communication

On April 18 the Centre for Economic Strategy and experts from the German Advisory Group conducted a workshop on central bank communication as a tool for shaping market participants‘ expectations. The event was opened by Ms. Yildiz Götze, head of the department at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, who acknowledged the significant progress of the recent years‘ reforms in the Ukrainian financial sector.

On March 20, 2018 the conference “Financing opportunities in Ukraine – Quo Vadis?” took place in Berlin. The event was organised by the German-Ukrainian Forum in cooperation with the German Advisory Group Ukraine, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, the German-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and the Embassy of Ukraine in Germany.

The German Advisory Group Ukraine, in cooperation with the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting and Otten Consulting gave a press conference at Interfax, Kiev on Thursday, February 1^st 2018. Topic of the press conference was the planned reform of corporate taxation in Ukraine.Findings from joint analysis about the economic and fiscal effects of the proposed new corporate tax – the “Tax on Withdrawn Capital” – in comparison with the present corporate tax were presented, as well as recommendations on policy measures to accompany the tax reform if it goes ahead. Speakers from the German Advisory Group Ukraine were Robert Kirchner, Project Manager, David Saha, lead author of the key papers on corporate tax reform and Thomas Otten, also owner of our cooperation partner Otten Consulting. We were joined by Oleksandra Betliy, Leading Research Fellow at the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting. The audience consisted of a group of around 15 journalists.

The Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine, Valerija Gontareva, participated in a roundtable discussion on March 29th with representatives of german business and politics in the headquarters of the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP).Ms Gontareva, who was invited to Berlin by the Director of the German Advisory Group Ukraine, Mr. Robert Kirchner and by the CEO of Berlin Economics, Dr Ricardo Giucci, shared her views on the reform of the banking sector in Ukraine with German stakeholders.

On January 30th 2017 the Ukrainian Minister for Energy and Coal Mining Nasalyk met the German Advisory Group (represented by our energy expert Georg Zachmann) and representatives of the Ukrainian NGO DiXi-Group to discuss the development of gas trading in Ukraine. Georg Zachmann presented a report prepared upon the request of the Ministry. The report outlines four challenges to develop a functioning gas wholesale market:

On 23 January 2017 the six-monthly information meeting about high-level government consultation in Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and Georgia was held at the Federal Ministry for Economy and Energy (BMWi). Representatives of the BMWi, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the German Parliament, the Reconstruction Credit Institute and members of foundations, associations and other expert organizations attended the event.

On 20 January 2017 Robert Kirchner, Vice Project Leader of the German Advisory Group Ukraine, took part in the panel discussion “Sustainable growth – success factors and strategic options for the agricultural sector in Ukraine”, which was held in the framework of the 9^th Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) at the “Green Week” in Berlin. The GFFA is organized by the Ministry for Food and Agriculture (BMEL) in cooperation with the GFFA Berlin e.V., the Senate of Berlin and the Messe Berlin GmbH.

On 15 December 2016 Ricardo Giucci, Leader of the German Advisory Group Ukraine, held a presentation about the economic situation in Ukraine to representatives of the German Bundestag. Among them were Karl-Georg Wellmann, Chairman of the German-Ukrainian Parliamentary Group, Norbert Spinrath and Susanna Karawanskij, both Vice Chairmen of the Parliamentary Group.

On the occasion of the monthly meeting of German business representatives in Kiev on 6 December 2016, the German Advisory Group Ukraine presented results of its latest analyses concerning Ukraine. First, Ricardo Giucci, Leader of the German Advisory Group Ukraine, held a presentation on the topic “The current situation of the Ukrainian economy at the end of 2016 and an outlook on 2017”. Referring to important macroeconomic indicators he pointed out that the situation is stabilising: GDP increased slightly this year and also investment went up significantly in the first half of 2016. The inflation rate went down to a single-digit number. Increasing imports are an indicator of the economic recovery and exports decrease mainly due to low commodity prices and the limited access to the Russian market.

On October 11 the newly opened German-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce organized the 2nd German-Ukrainian Forum of Trade “Potential – Reforms – Cooperation”. Robert Kirchner presented his assessment of the industrial development of the country in one of the panels. During other panels current possibilities of cooperation with Ukraine in the fields of infrastructure, innovations, energy efficiency and agriculture were discussed.

On September 29 during the meeting of Working Group Ukraine of Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations Dr. Ricardo Giucci, Team leader of German Advisory Group, gave an evaluating lecture on the current economic developments in Ukraine with particular focus on local companies.

On 08.09. the conference „Economic Stabilization and Combatting Corruption in Ukraine“, which had been organized by Kiev Dialogue in cooperation with the European Commission in Germany and the German Advisory Group Ukraine, took place in Berlin.

On 18.08.2016 Robert Kirchner participated in the discussion about the topic “Refugees in Ukraine, Refugees in Europe – Common Perspectives in the Refugee Crisis”, which had been organized by the European Academy in Berlin. The event was dedicated to the following questions: Which challenges do the events in Ukraine pose to the European Union? And how can we cooperate to overcome these?

The information session on governement consultancy in Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and Georgia takes place twice a year in the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi).

Twice a year, the consultants of the German Advisory Group Ukraine host an information session on their work in Ukraine and give insight to their assessments of the recent macroeconomic developments.

Speech at the 5^th politico-economic talks of the Ostinstitut Wismar

The 5^th politico-economic talks of the Ostinstitut Wismar on the topic “Investment and investment protection in Russia and Ukraine” took place on July 3^rd at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP). Dr. Ricardo Giucci, head of the German Advisory Group Ukraine presented an overview of the economic state of Ukraine and the development of Russo-Ukrainian economic relations.

The information session on governement consultancy in Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia and Moldova takes place twice a year in the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi). The specialist public consists of experts from various state institutions, non-governmental organisations, think tanks and business associations.  

“Economic reforms aimed at external stabilization. A progress assessment”

For the third year in succession, east forum Berlin was devoted to the opportunities and challenges for a common economic space from Lisbon to Vladivostok. 350 opinion leaders from the political and business worlds of 25 countries discussed a future design of political and economic European integration.

On March 05, Ricardo Giucci and David Saha from the German Advisory Group met with Victor Galasyuk, Chairman of the Committee on Industrial Policy and Entrepreneurship. Topics for discussion were the current industrial policy and promotion of economic development in Ukraine.

“The Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement: Opportunities and Challenges”

The tenth annual conference of “Kiev Dialogue” was on the topic of “Ukraine in times of existential crisis: Ways to political and economic renewal”. Ca. 200 civil society activists, politicians, journalists and scientists were invited to the two day conference. Their aim was to discuss the current situation in Ukraine and think through possible scenarios for its future.

The biannual information session in the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) on government consultancy in the countries Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and Georgia was again very well attended.

The Berlin Economics’ experts first gave presentations on the economic situation in Ukraine, the situation in the east of the country as well as to the specific sectors of machine building and gas.

On September 24th, the experts of the German Advisory Group and the Institute for Economic Research (IER) Kyiv held a press conference on the topic: “Can Ukraine secure enough gas for the winter?”

On June 17, Dr. Ricardo Giucci presented the German Advisory Group’s assessment of Ukraine’s regional and sectoral exposure to the Russian market in the German Embassy in Kyiv.

April 16th, Ricardo Giucci of the German Advisory Group Ukraine presented facts on the topic: “Ukraine between East and West: Perspectives for free trade with both sides”Politicians and mass media from all sides successfully created a wrong image in the public perception during the last month, namely that Ukraine had to face an “either-or” decision between the two trading blocs Customs Union and European Union.

About 300 business representatives and politicians from 20 countries participated in the 2. east forum Berlin, which took place under the topic “Opportunities for an economic area from Lisbon to Vladivostok” again.In his opening speech the Federal Foreign Minister Steinmeier referred to a common economic area between Lisbon and Vladivostok as still the right objective, yet during the last weeks it receded into dim distance.Berlin Economics‘ Ricardo Giucci contributed to a sound discussion with his presentation of his analysis “Eastern Partnership countries between East and West: Perspectives and challenges”. There are not two, but three groups of countries between Lisbon and Vladivostok, said Giucci: The European Union, which forms the first trading bloc, the Customs Union between Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, which forms the second trading bloc. And in between there are further states that do not belong to one of the trading blocs. In particular this is about five states of the Eastern Partnership (EP): Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, for whom free trade with both trading blocs would be the economic best option.

Ukraine faces the most serious crisis in years, which is further exacerbated by ongoing civil unrest. What can be done to solve the enormous economic problems, and what implies financial help from outside for Ukraine?

This year’s information session on government consultancy at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy was very well attended.
The Berlin Economics experts held short speeches on the macroeconomic situation in the countries and their characteristics and challenges.
The topics trade, DCFTA and Energy were intensely discussed due to the current situation in Ukraine. Furthermore, the Economic Reform Agenda for Ukraine suggested by the Experts was presented. After the Experts’ speeches the guests used their opportunity to ask questions or contribute with comments to the discussion.
Among the guests were Members of the Parliament (Bundestag), the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Federal Foreign Office, the GIZ, business associations and NGOs.

Ukraine currently faces major economic challenges, as the economy itself is stagnant and needs reforms. When the German Advisory Group met with Deputy Minister for Economic Development and Trade Anatoliy Maksiuta, a necessary reform agenda for Ukraine was discussed.

The main focus at the meeting was made on discussing the economic reforms of the new Government of Ukraine in light of the financial and economic situation and the present challenges for the national security of Ukraine, in particular in the context of the relations with the Russian Federation.