By the end of June, the Cabinet of Ministers and the Verkhovna Rada must implement nine points under the plan, according to which Ukraine should receive €50 billion in the next four years. In the next three months, the government must fulfill nine points under the Ukraine facility, which was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on March 18. Almost half of the obligations have already been fulfilled. Three points were closed early.
In February, the parliament adopted the law on corporate governance of state-owned companies, the Ministry of Finance adopted a plan for the digitalization of customs, and in January the government supported the Strategy for Thermal Modernization of Buildings.
Among the unresolved tasks is the reform of the Bureau of Economic Security (BEB):
- preparation of the budget declaration,
- approval of the mine action strategy,
- approval of the National Energy and Climate Plan, - approval of the plan of measures to implement the reform of state investment management.
The price of timely implementation is €4 billion out of €16 billion that the Cabinet of Ministers should receive this year.
Does the government have time to implement the plan and what do the reforms look like from the inside?
BEB reform
By the end of June 2024, the parliament plans to adopt a law on restarting the BEB.
At the end of February, the Verkhovna Rada (Verkhovna Rada) failed the government's version of the draft law on BEB. The deputies demanded to review two key issues, such as: 1) re-certification of employees
2) selection of the director of the bureau
Now the government must resubmit the bill to the Verkhovna Rada. It will probably happen in mid-April.
Budget declaration
The Ministry of Finance must prepare a budget declaration for 2025-2027 by May 15.
The Cabinet of Ministers already approved in March the restoration of medium-term planning at the local level. Now the parliament has to support this decision. If the entire procedure is completed by July, medium-term planning at the local level will begin this year, the press service of the Ministry of Finance said in a written response. If not, then from the next one. Priority spheres of expenditure:
– provision of defense forces;
– social support;
- restoration of destroyed or damaged property;
- fulfillment of all debt obligations.
Reform of the management of state-owned companies
In the Ukraine Facility plan, this indicator is for the second quarter of 2024, but the parliament and the government have already fulfilled it. The law was adopted at the end of February 2024.
The National Energy and Climate Plan
The document harmonizes all the commitments that the government made within the framework of various international energy and climate policy reform programs, and also establishes new goals stipulated by European legislation.
Mine action strategy until 2033
The National Mine Action Authority reviewed the strategy on February 12, 2024. Now the document must be approved by the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) and signed by the president. As part of the strategy, by the end of April, the Ministry of Economy will launch a program for agrarians and farmers to compensate for the demining of territories. For this, the company should submit an application through the State Agrarian Register (DAR), then specialists of the Humanitarian Demining Center should process it and form the initial cost of the work.
The demining application is then submitted to Prozorro and the demining operator who offered the lowest price will receive the order. The state covers 80% of the costs, and the company covers the remaining 20%. In the budget for this year, UAH 3 billion has been allocated to the program. Also, the Unified State Register of Contaminated Lands should become operational in the coming months. It will indicate safe areas that have been surveyed or need demining.
Digitization of the State Customs Service
In February 2024, the Ministry of Finance approved the plan for digitization of the customs office, calculated until 2028. As part of the strategy, the development of two digital tools should be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2024:
– Automated customs clearance system "Center", which will contain various documents, for example, electronic copies of customs declarations;
– The updated national system of guarantees (GMS-UA) will ensure the guarantee of goods in the mode of joint transit. It will be possible to register a financial guarantee electronically and make changes to it.
By the end of the second quarter, customs will start implementing the decision system (CDS). This is an automated system that will process the decisions of the customs authorities according to the data exchange format used in the EU.
During the same period, testing of the anti-counterfeiting and piracy system (COPIS) should be completed. This is a platform that will contain information about rights holders and the history of their applications, submission of changes to them, samples of protected products, etc.
Negotiations are also underway with the Ministry of Infrastructure to provide benefits to enterprises that use digital services, for example, the computerized transit system (New Computerized Transit System – NCTS). It is, for example, about the advantages of using the "eCherga" application, the press service of the ministry adds.
Digitization of customs also has an anti-corruption effect - not only by minimizing the human factor, but also by improving the exchange of information between enterprises and customs authorities of neighboring countries, the press service of the Ministry of Finance adds.
The road map for reforming the management of state investments
Deadline – until June 2024.
The document is divided into two stages - a transitional period (2024-2025) and full implementation (2026-2028). Key tasks for the first stage:
– introduction of strategic planning of public investments;
– legal regulation;
– update of the methodological base;
- creation of IT architecture.
The Ministry of Finance has already received a number of investment projects for 2025-2027. Currently, the projects are undergoing screening and prioritization. Further, they should be considered by the Strategic Investment Council, which will be established soon, according to the press service of the Ministry of Finance. At the legislative level, the requirement to include in the budget only those projects that have passed the assessment and selection will be strengthened, according to the response of the department's press service.
Strategy for thermal modernization of buildings for the period until 2050
At the beginning of January 2024, the government approved the strategy for thermal modernization of buildings, this indicator can also be considered fulfilled.
In addition, this is one of the clauses of the Association Agreement with the EU. The document contains the following priorities:
– rapid pace of thermal modernization of public buildings;
– permanent financing;
– digitization of processes;
- creation of market conditions and attraction of human potential in this sphere.
Implementation should reduce energy consumption in the public and residential buildings sector by 15% by 2030, 30% by 2040 and 40% by 2050.
