“We will provide 25 million euros
($27 million) annually to support the reforms here,” Lofven said.
“The Baltic states, Poland and Serbia show the economic benefits of closer
integration with Europe very well. After signing the association agreement in
2014, the next logical step for Ukraine is to apply for the European Union membership.
Sweden supports Ukraine in its intention to have closer relations with the
EU.”.
Lofven emphasized he sees the war-torn
Donbas as part of Ukraine and Russia as a direct threat responsible for the
current hardships of more than 1 million Donbas displaced residents since the
Kremlin instigated the war a year ago.
Meanwhile, energy efficiency is
especially critical, given the expected 5.5 percent economic contraction this
year amid the war in the Donbas.
Currently, Ukraine uses three times more
energy per unit of gross domestic product than the EU average, according to
Lofven.
Aivaras Abromavicius, Ukraine’s economy
minister, agreed with Lofven about the need for greater energy efficiency.
“Ukraine consumes about 40 billion
cubic meters of gas annually, while should have consumed 6 billion cubic meters
less,” he said.
Abromavicius noted that Swedish
state-owned enterprises have high corporate standards and make money for the
state, while in Ukraine such enterprises only bring profits to certain individuals.
This is one reason why Ukraine needs to sell off its government-run assets, he
said.
Lofven sees gender inequality as an
impediment in Ukraine, where a majority of senior positions in both the public
and private sectors are held by men. “We want to support women’s economic
and social empowerement,” Lofven commented.
In Sweden, at least 40 percent of
corporate board members are women. Meanwhile, Japan has a special law that
obliges the corporations to have at least 30 percent female members on their boards.
“However, it’s your choice what kind
of society you want to build,” Lofven said.
Kyiv Post associate business editor Ivan Verstyuk can be reached at [email protected].
