By Oleg Kyryievskyi and Ivan Dmytrasevych
As Ukraine fights for its independence, freedom, and for peace in Europe, there are a lot of talks on how to support Ukraine. As any means are good, some are better and more efficient.
In addition, the practice showed that a lot of internationally known humanitarian organizations were unable to provide adequate support using the western donations. So, money donated was redistributed, perhaps, not in the most efficient way. Though it is not the main topic of this article, we will attach the list of local trusted funds where you can help.
What needs to be understood is that not all the support is about the supply or donations. To the world’s (and our own) surprise, war, even the massive one, does not eliminate life itself after the frontlines. For example, since the beginning of the academic year in Ukraine, 12,904 schools have started the educational process. Also, as of September 13th, 2022, more than 131,000 students were enrolled in the bachelor’s program based on secondary education.
And as with any part of life – business as well works as a main fuel of the economy. Even more: business in Ukraine is not only about money and the classical meaning of social responsibility. It is also one of the main suppоrter and donor to the most crucial points of our defense. The importance of the functioning of the economic system cannot be overestimated. As proof, there is a case with a “People’s Bayraktar”. Over 600,000,000 UAH were collected in 4 days and part of the sum was donations from Ukrainian businesses.
This is without mentioning the taxes paid to the Ukrainian economy. We have to spend more than usual on the defense and humanitarian needs in the year 2022-2023. About 50% of the budget for 2023 for instance is devoted to defense. The government plans to collect UAH 1.279 trillion from taxpayers and other sources (profits of state-owned companies and the NBU).
It is not easy to understand that Ukrainians are still struggling to live their lives. However, thanks to our courage, the whole world is now talking about Ukrainians. And here is (link: https://life.pravda.com.ua/society/2022/10/10/250766/ ) the proof: in the Kyiv metro, residents of the capital sing Ukrainian songs during the mass shelling of the country on October 10.
So, in addition to donations (we are very thankful to everyone, though) please continue or start working with Ukraine. There are many cases when business projects were put on ice or stopped because of war. Of course often it is fully understandable end explained by the dangers of war. But not always.
For instance, in Lviv, or other western Ukrainian cities, joint projects in some companies were just stopped because of Russian aggression. Notwithstanding, the nearest military actions are taking place more than 500 miles away from Lviv and thanks to our Military Forces – this distance is growing.
Banking and monetary systems are stable, and trade in goods is slowly renewing via the western border. Diplomatic institutions and embassies of the vast majority of countries have already resumed their work and have even returned to the capital.
But due to movie images of WWII, a lot of businesses stopped working with Ukrainian companies because “it is war down there”. We do not insist on investing in something material with huge risks but on working with Ukrainian businesses, especially SMEs. And due to the digitilized world, there is a lot of space for cooperation in tech business.
Talents, loyalty, motivation to work and help the country, taxes, and foreign currency inflow (which is important for our economy) – these all help in geometrical progression. So please continue to work with Ukrainian businesses, and find a reliable and motivated business partner here. In addition to business collaborations, individuals can contribute in diverse ways, such as through programs where you can donate your car, providing essential support in these challenging times.
We have done the job to offer a few initiatives to make the process of finding a business partner easier:
- Do Business With Ukraine https://www.dobizwithua.com/
-
Global Business for Ukraine https://www.gb4u.org/
- “Doing Business with Ukrainians” https://chamber.ua/doing-business-with-ukrainians/
- UA Founders https://www.uafounders.org/
- EASE Work https://work.it-ease.com/
- B2BeeMatch https://www.b2beematch.com/en/business-ukraine
- Biz for Ukraine https://www.bizforukraine.com/#dm
- Business Matchmaking Portal https://bmmp.nucc.no/?_gl=1%2A40deab%2A_ga%2AMTA1MzA4MjU5OS4xNjY1NjAyNjcx%2A_ga_ZV79T5D4NE%2AMTY2NTYwMjY3MS4xLjAuMTY2NTYwMjY3MS4wLjAuMA..&_ga=2.137562864.1909413842.1665602672-1053082599.1665602671
And of course, if you would like to donate to the military or humanitarian needs, we highly encourage you to do it through the trusted local funds as:
Military:
- Come Back Alive https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate-en/#donate-army-card-monthly
- Charity Fond Serhiy Prytula https://prytulafoundation.org/en
- Hospitallers https://www.hospitallers.life/needs-hospitallers
Humanitarian:
- Edopomoga: https://social.edopomoga.gov.ua/en/
- Spivdiia https://spivdiia.org.ua/en
- Others Fund https://www.facebook.com/people/Others_fund/100084492824482/
We hope that you will find your ideal business partner, thereby helping Ukraine to win.
About the Authors
Oleg Kyryievskyi is an International trade lawyer, Attorney-at-Law, managing partner at First Chair Legal, a Ukrainian law firm dealing with international trade and investments. Co-chair of the Customs Committee at European Business Association. One of the recommended lawyers for Ukraine by Best Lawyers 2022.
Ivan Dmytrasevych is the CEO at UnamIT, co-founder of Startup Depot, Lviv Business Incubator and CEO at Lviv Tech Angels. Recent years, he has been a co-organizer of one of the largest tech events in Europe – IT Arena.
