In the run-up to the German-Ukrainian Economic Conference, experts have drawn up a dossier with concrete plans for the reconstruction of the Ukrainian economy. Accordingly, international donors should concentrate on creating quick incentives for the private sector.
The German economy is already planning for post-war reconstruction in Ukraine. On the initiative of the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations (OA), 50 experts have drawn up a dossier with detailed proposals and offers for economic reconstruction, the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” (RND) reported in advance.
“We have to provide emergency aid, for example with the infrastructure or the energy supply, but we must also think about the future,” said Michael Harms, Managing Director of the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Chancellor Olaf Scholz had previously called for an international “Marshall Plan of the 21st Century” for reconstruction in Ukraine.
“RND” reported that the “Rebuild Ukraine” dossier was drawn up in the run-up to the German-Ukrainian Economic Conference in Berlin. Scholz and the Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal are also expected there. The paper therefore recommends that the European countries involved in the reconstruction and the European Union (EU) each appoint a high-level coordinator for Ukraine.
These should then form a council that will exchange information with the Ukrainian government on current requirements and projects. Each donor country should retain control of its own project funds to ensure transparency and accountability. “People need to see quick results in rebuilding destroyed infrastructure,” Harms said. “At the same time, it is important to lay the foundations for sustainable growth.” Above all, this means exploiting Ukraine’s huge growth potential in digitization, agriculture and green energies and consistently building a low-carbon economy.
As long as war reigns, a huge wave of investment by German companies in the Ukraine is of course not to be expected, said Harms. It will be more of a gradual process, but one that needs to be prepared for. And there are positive signals from German companies that are maintaining or even expanding their involvement in Ukraine despite the war, for example in the automotive supply industry or in the building materials trade.
According to the ideas of the German companies, international donors and the Ukrainian government should concentrate on creating quick incentives for the private sector, following the example of the Marshall Plan for West Germany after the Second World War. “In order to get involved, companies need reliable contacts, quick tenders and approvals, and financial and legal security,” said Harms.
