Russian hostile invasion. - Over 100 Accords Finalized at Ukraine Reconstruction Meeting
At the Ukraine reconstruction conference in Berlin, over 100 agreements were signed, as per Development Minister Svenja Schulze. These comprised of statements of intent between businesses and governments as well as alliances and initiatives, the SPD politician stated during an event with the Ukrainian deputy prime minister and economic minister Julia Swyrydenko.
Four aspects of reconstruction have been identified: the business, human, local, and EU dimensions. The event is not your typical donor conference aiming to collect funds but rather a platform for networking. At this two-day conference, more than 3,000 individuals from politics, business, and international organizations participated. Three major outcomes were:
Establishing an alliance to strengthen small and medium-sized businesses
A partnership has been formed between Germany, Ukraine, and 12 other countries along with 17 development organizations to support small and medium-sized enterprises. Schulze explained, "Ukraine requires a powerful economy to overcome the war and rebuild the destroyed areas."
Small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are the pillars of the Ukrainian economy. They contribute to 67% of Ukraine's value creation and create 80% of the jobs. As part of this alliance, affordable loans are being offered to such companies. She added, "One of the most potent drivers of reconstruction are subsidized loans for small and medium-sized Ukrainian businesses." The pledges exceeded 7 billion euros for ongoing and new SME programs. Almost 4.5 billion euros of this were allocated to new programs.
"Small and medium-sized enterprises have a critical role in reconstructing the country," said Swyrydenko. Medium-sized companies were significantly impacted by the Russian invasion. The minister stressed their crucial role in the nation's future and current resistance.
Promoting city partnerships accelerates reconstruction
Germany encourages the expansion of city partnerships. "Let's work together to ensure that every Ukrainian municipality has at least one international partner," Schulze said during a session with German and Ukrainian mayors. The German-Ukrainian partnership network encompasses more than 200 municipalities. In total, there are around 2,200 Ukrainian partnerships with communities in roughly 60 countries - notably Poland, Germany, Hungary, Romania, and Lithuania.
Just a third of the approximately 1,500 Ukrainian municipalities have a connection with a foreign community - 1,000 of these are generally small municipalities without any partners, according to Schulze. She underlined the importance of every municipality participating in the country's reconstruction and EU integration. Alongside the Council of European Municipalities and Regions, they are developing a software where localities can develop profiles and search for partners.
German and Ukrainian mayors, such as the mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, as well as the mayors of Lviv located near the Polish border, Gdansk in Poland, and Freiburg in Baden-Württemberg and Teltow in Brandenburg were present. These mayors all have partnerships with Ukrainian cities. "We're strongest together," said, for instance, the mayor of Teltow, Thomas Schmidt, whose community has a three-way partnership with the Ukrainian city of Hotyn and a Polish city.
Training initiative begins
Germany and more than 50 international organizations, states, and companies are launching a training initiative to train 180,000 specialists for reconstruction. "Regardless of how many times Russia destroys power lines, hospitals, or buildings, the Ukrainians will have the knowledge and skills to rebuild them," said Schulze on Tuesday. The members of the Skills Alliance for Ukraine for reconstruction will contribute a total of over 700 million euros for this purpose. Schulze stated, "No matter how frequently Russia demolishes power lines, hospitals, or buildings, the Ukrainians will possess the knowledge and capabilities to rebuild them." The Skills Alliance for Ukraine for reconstruction involves Germany, along with over 50 international organizations, states, and businesses, which will provide a total of more than 700 million euros for this objective.
