Zelensky Plans Anti-Corruption Reforms

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is to announce anti-corruption reforms along with the reshuffling and consolidation of his cabinet, according to international media sources.

The decision was made last week after it was revealed that Ukraine will be granted hundreds of billions of dollars from the strongest economies in the world for post-war reconstruction.

The new cabinet will be re-organised by reducing the number of ministers from the current 20, to an estimated 12. This means the ministry’s headcount could drop by almost half.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also set to be reviewed to ensure planning for a potential future integration into the European Union. However, it is unknown if Dmytro Kuleba, the foreign minister, would stay in the role.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation will be conducting the reforms, and President Zelensky, in his night time video address to the country on Saturday, July 9, indicated “important news” in the upcoming week, which also included news from government officials.

In his address, the president announced he had fired numerous Ukranian ambassadors, including those appointed to Hungary, Germany, and India. He also revealed that new candidates are being prepared.

Zelensky stated that Ukraine was “very serious” about anti-corruption reforms, Agence France Presse revealed following a recent reconstruction conference in Lugano, Switzerland.

In the Lugano Declaration, the elimination of corruption and the strengthening of the rule of law is one of the most fundamental principles.

“We’re serious about showing the world that we have a roadmap and a plan that’s manageable and that can be executed, and implemented at some stage,” Alexander Rodnyansky revealed to AFP.

Ukraine was ranked 122 out of 180 countries on a corruption index perceptions for 2021, by Transparency International, an anti-corruption watchdog.

Denmark, New Zealand, and Finland were ranked at number one, meaning they were the least corrupt nations. South Sudan was ranked the most corrupt country at 180, with Russia ranking just below Ukraine at 136.