Over 400 companies in Poland have signed up for a programme aimed at helping Ukraine rebuild after the war, the Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH), a state body, has announced.
The news comes as Ukraine’s government named Poland as one of the countries that will help its postwar recovery, with Polish efforts to be focused in the Donetsk region. Both the Polish and Ukrainian governments say that they want confiscated Russian assets to pay for the reconstruction.
— Belgium — Mykolaiv
– Sweden and the Netherlands – Kherson
– Switzerland – Odesa
– Norway – Kirovohrad
– Latvia – Zaporizhzhia
— Poland and Italy – Donetsk— ТРУХА⚡️English (@TpyxaNews) July 5, 2022
“We see a lot of interest from our companies in the Ukraine reconstruction programme,” said PAIH’s president, Krzysztof Drynda, noting that 420 firms have registered an interest.
“It is not only due to geographical proximity or the fact that Ukrainians are already employees of many Polish companies,” he added. “For companies, it is an opportunity to provide aid and support to Ukraine…by carrying out their normal business tasks.”
Do programu odbudowy Ukrainy zgłosiło się 420 firm, najwięcej z branży budowlanej i IT, podała Polska Agencja Inwestycji i Handlu #wojna #Ukraina #eksport #inwestycje@MRiTGOVPL @PAIH_plhttps://t.co/DCOhuf49az
— 300Gospodarka (@300gospodarka) July 6, 2022
Companies have been able to register their desire to participate in the project since 9 June. PAIH is especially inviting companies from key sectors for Ukraine’s recovery, such as construction, medical, transport and logistics, agriculture, food and consumer goods, automotive and transportation equipment, machinery and IT/ICT.
Among the Polish firms to sign up, the largest numbers are from the construction and IT industries. Most of the submissions come from small- and medium-sized enterprises. About 50 companies with 250 or more employees also signed up for the programme.
From 1 August, joint industry consultations will begin and project implementation will take place when the situation in Ukraine stabilises, PAIH announced.
Even before the war, Poland and Ukraine shared strong economic ties, and trade between the countries has grown rapidly in recent years. In 2021, the value of Polish exports to Ukraine was €6.3 billion, while the value of imports from Ukraine was €4.3 billion.
However, the war has hit Ukraine’s economy hard, with supply chains broken, infrastructure destroyed, and many employees fleeing the country for safety in neighbouring countries or joining the war effort.
PAIH estimates that at least $500-600 billion will be needed to rebuild the war-ravaged country. Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, this week put the figure at $750 billion, reports Interia.
Speaking at a conference on the rebuilding of Ukraine in Lugano, Switzerland, Shmyhal said that the main source of financing should be assets seized from Russia and its oligarchs. He estimated that $300-500 billion of Russian assets had been frozen.
He noted that some countries, including Germany, the US and Canada, had begun taking steps to allow the confiscation of such property. Poland’s government this week also approved such a measure, though has previously indicated that the constitution would need to be changed to allow it.
On Tuesday, Polish deputy foreign minister Marcin Przydacz told Polskie Radio that because “Russia is responsible for the invasion, Russia is responsible for the destruction, Russia should pay for the reconstruction of Ukraine in the first place” through “confiscated funds”.
Alicja Ptak is senior editor at Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She previously worked for Reuters.
