A meeting was held at the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine with the Head of the Spanish Office for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, Clara Guzman Zapater. On behalf of the ministry, it was held by First Deputy Minister Alena Shkrum and Deputy Minister Maryna Denisyuk.
The main focus of the meeting was the start of the work of the Spanish Office for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, which, among other things, will operate on the principle of a “single window” for Spanish private companies.
Special attention was paid to the implementation of new mechanisms for preferential long-term lending and grant support and technical assistance. This should create favorable conditions for attracting Spanish business and its expertise to the implementation of strategic projects in Ukraine.
“We highly appreciate Spain’s significant contribution to supporting Ukraine, which already exceeds 845 million euros. The creation of a specialized Office for Reconstruction and the allocation of an additional 200 million euros for the modernization of energy and infrastructure is an important step to strengthen the participation of Spanish business in these processes. We are ready to jointly identify priority projects so that these funds are used with maximum social effect for the needs of restoring Ukrainian infrastructure,” said Alyona Shkrum.
The Ministry of Development and Cooperation of Ukraine has proposed to Spanish partners to support investment projects in the energy and logistics sectors. These are priority initiatives with a high degree of readiness, which the Spanish side and the private sector in particular can participate in financing.
During the meeting, the plans and priorities of the Ministry of Development and the Reconstruction Agency were presented. A separate approach is for frontline regions, which should receive grant and technical assistance as a priority.
Spain’s experience in the field of decentralization and establishing clear interaction between the national and regional levels is extremely valuable for Ukraine. Currently, the parties are beginning preparations for signing intergovernmental agreements (G2G), which will become a legal platform for the implementation of specific sectoral projects for reconstruction and development.
“Today, the G2G format for us is an opportunity to quickly solve critical challenges. Be it the supply of cogeneration units for the energy sustainability of communities or the construction of new strategic roads to the western borders. We are ready to work with foreign business on specific cases, using G2G as a reliable tool for attracting investments,” said Maryna Denisyuk. (Development Ministry)