What is and should be the national security economy? This was the question answered by the speakers and guests of the New Country discussion panel, a joint project of LB.ua and EFI Group, which took place on 18 March.
What industries ensure economic development in times of war? Which sectors will be the driving force behind the country's recovery after the war is over? How does a strong economy contribute to the formation of a long-term security foundation? These and other equally important issues (including tax administration/increase/decrease, changes in tax models) were discussed by top speakers from the real economy, well-known businessmen in the country, and a representative of the Ministry of Economy. In particular:
Oleksandr Yakovenko, TAF Drones (the company is one of the largest manufacturers of FPV drones, reconnaissance drones and electronic warfare systems)
The founder of TAF Drones spoke about the development of the drone industry and once again stressed the need to export technologies and products in the field of Miltech.
‘Currently, manufacturers are underutilised by 100%. The average capacity utilisation varies from company to company, but it is no more than half of the capacity. At the same time, the government prohibits exporting products abroad. We understand why this is happening. It makes political sense, because it would be strange if we, a country at war, exported products. But it has a negative impact on the economy and the development of the industry. Because when the war or the active phase is over, the further development of the industry will be questionable,’ says Oleksandr Yakovenko.
Artem Borodatyuk, founder of Netpeak Group
The founder of Netpeak Group (includes Netpeak, Inweb, Octopus Events, Serpstat agencies) also noted how the war affects the development of the IT sector.
‘Ukrainian IT needs to be divided. There is outsourcing and product companies. And only product companies are developing now. Outsourcing does not enter into contracts, it does not want to take risks. And there are three risks: blackouts, missiles, and conditional mobilisation. There are companies where, if one person is mobilised, the business basically ends. This is the specificity of IT,' Borodatyuk says, adding that at least 150 outsourcing companies closed last year. The businessman shared his vision of how to fix this and what to do to develop the industry and the economy as a whole during his speech at the discussion panel.
Ihor Liski, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of EFI Group Investment Company
According to Ihor Liski, Ukraine needs a new industrialisation and industrial revival.
‘We need a powerful energy sector, an engineering base that will allow us to revive the industry. We need a new industrialisation of the country. We have to become an industrial base for Europe. Then we can claim a different future. This is the main story - energy, industrialisation, agriculture (we need to complete the process with added value). We need to reach at least the level of Poland in agriculture. I'm not talking about the Netherlands or Italy, where they achieve tenfold exports of value-added products with a much smaller land base,’ the businessman says.
Taras Kachka, Deputy Minister of Economy, Trade and Agriculture
As a representative of the government, Taras Kachka has taken on all the complaints and comments about the principles of doing business in the country, sometimes acknowledging gaps, sometimes calling for changes.
‘The fact that no one is completely satisfied is also a normal story, because it means that we have a democratic society. From this perspective, we need to understand that any model (of taxation) can be defended, but the question is where we are heading.
And in my understanding, all of us - it's not a matter of the government, but all of us, as a society, as a business, are moving in the right direction. Because even during the war, we survived, the business itself survived, and the state was not superfluous, but rather helpful in this case. We did not use total administrative regulation of the economy, but rather resorted to coordination and mutual dialogue, even in times of war,’ said the representative of the Ministry of Economy.
The conversation was multifaceted and quite lively. It was joined by guests, including experts, entrepreneurs, MPs and representatives of the public sector. The main points of the discussion, as well as the full speeches of the top speakers, will be published soon on LB.ua.
