10th Anniversary of the Kyiv International Economic Forum 2024 Took Place in Kyiv

The Kyiv International Economic Forum (KIEF) brought together more than 1,000 guests this year. More than 100 speakers took part in 16 panel discussions: entrepreneurs, top managers, representatives of international organizations, analysts and government officials. They shared their views on Ukraine’s role in the global economy, attracting investment in the face of ongoing armed aggression, developing defense technologies and the future of the energy system.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the forum in a video. During his speech, he said that business would be involved in the economic part of the internal victory plan.

“We have invited the business community to join in developing the internal plan, specifically the economic aspect. First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko is leading this work, and the strategic vision of entrepreneurs will be taken into account. Just as will be one of our key geopolitical needs – to be in Europe. This is the foundation,” Zelensky said.

The Kyiv International Economic Forum was opened by the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal. He shared his vision of the future prospects and challenges of the present. In his speech, he focused on the economy, financial stability, energy, logistics, staff reservations and business support. The Prime Minister noted that the country will have the funds to finance the army and all priority budget expenditures.

“We have a clear understanding of how to cover the budget deficit in 2025. We are continuing the program with the IMF and we have the Ukraine Facility with the European Union. We will receive $50 billion from the G7 and the EU from the use of frozen Russian assets. The country will have the funds to finance the army and all priority budget expenditures. We agreed on this with the IMF and our partners. This means that we will not resort to emission financing of the budget,” the Prime Minister said.

The first discussion panel “Ukraine and Europe: Toward A Common Future” featured Yulia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov, Vice Prime Minister for Innovations, Development of Education, Science and Technologies – Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Vjaceslavs Dombrovskis, Minister of Economy and Energy in Latvia (2014), Minister of Education and Science in Latvia (2013-2014), and John Denton, Secretary General of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

“Ukraine’s integration into the EU will generate added value not only for Ukraine but also for Europe. We have deposits of critical materials that the EU lacks and a growing defense industry. We have the potential and ambition to replace part of the EU's imports with goods produced in Ukraine, strengthening European strategic autonomy. To this end, we are implementing a number of policies, including the ‘Made in Ukraine’ program, to stimulate production, attract investment in the real sector and boost non-resource exports,” said Svyrydenko.

During the discussion, Mykhailo Fedorov, Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, highlighted the rapid development of defense technologies.

“We are now seeing how technologies are developing during a full-scale war. For example, let’s take defense tech: At the beginning, we had seven companies that created drones, and now there are 500 of them. And we see their number growing every week. But they do not appear by themselves, their emergence depends on incentives and conditions,” said Fedorov. 

“The anniversary of KIEF has demonstrated our ability to meet this challenge of bringing together different stakeholders for the development of Ukraine. The KIEF is a platform that brings business, government and the civil sector together to develop ideas. This year’s discussions were heated, often emotional, but highly productive. We now have a vision of the key areas of work and approaches to them. I have great hope that they will be implemented, and next year we will meet at the same venue and discuss the results,” said Yurii Pyvovarov, CEO of the KIEF.

During one of the panel discussions, Vasyl Khmelnytsky, KIEF initiator and founder of UFuture holding, noted the success of the country depends on the unification of government and business. 

“In order for us to reach Poland or China quickly, we need to unite business and government. I know that not everyone likes this idea, but if we need to build 10,000 factories or enterprises, it is impossible without cooperation with the government. The challenge is huge – the government and business must work as a team. We need more entrepreneurs, we need to teach entrepreneurship in schools. If we want to make an economic breakthrough, the government must develop education and create attractive conditions for business and investors,” Khmelnytsky said.

Vasyl Khmelnytsky also stressed the importance of making decisions in difficult situations.

“If a business has no economy, sell it, even at a loss, and move forward. I had LvivTech.City, a very good project. But two years after the start of the war, I sold it at a loss, covered the loans, invested in UNIT.City, and continue to develop,” Khmelnytsky added.

This year, the KIEF raised Hr.1.1 million ($26,488) to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and provide psychological rehabilitation for children. The funds will go to the 10th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade “Edelweiss,” which is fighting the Russian invasion in the east, and the NGO Gen.Ukrainian, which provides psychological rehabilitation for children in Gen.Camp camps.

Kyiv International Economic Forum is one of the largest international forums in Eastern Europe that brings together representatives of business, government, and society to discuss key economic issues and global trends.

Recordings of the forum’s discussion panels are available on the KIEF YouTube channel.

Download photos from the event by following the link.

Title partners: UFuture, Mastercard, Nova Post, AEQUO, UIA “FEOGI,” Naftogaz Group

Partners: Biopharma, Interpipe, FUIB, MHP, Epicentr, PrivatBank, DTEK, Lamel, Ajax, Biosphere Corporation, Sense Bank, Kernel, Vodafone, OKKO, Metinvest, Dovgiy Family Office, BGV Group Management

Panel Discussions Partners: American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine (ACC), Centre for Social Change and Behavioural Economics, GLOBSEC 

Business expert: Forbes Ukraine

Title media partners: Starlight Media, 1+1 media

Media partners: New Voice, LIGA.net, Interfax-Ukraine, TAVR Media, RBC-Ukraine, Kyiv Post, Mind.ua, Delo.ua, The Kyiv Independent, Huxley, Tvoe Misto