Ukraine expects over 4.6M to return to participate in country’s reconstruction - Vice PM

That’s according to Yuliya Svyrydenko, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine, who spoke in Brussels after the meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU (COREPER II), an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"The Ukrainian economy experienced a 30% decline as of the end of last year due to a decrease in production and consumption. Currently, a significant challenge facing the government of Ukraine is to ensure that Ukrainians return. We’re doing everything possible to create suitable conditions, jobs, and engage them in production and development of small and medium-sized businesses. More than 4.6 million Ukrainians are currently abroad. We need them to return to participate in the recovery efforts and reconstruction of Ukraine," the government official said.

She noted that in order to achieve this goal, it will be necessary to rebuild homes and social infrastructure, in particular kindergartens and schools, to launch appropriate programs for the development of women's entrepreneurship, as well as employment programs for veterans, in order to respond to the lack of workers in the labor market.

"It's good that they had the opportunity to study, learn the language, and acquire new skills. All this will work on the Ukrainian labor market. Most of the Ukrainians who are currently abroad – we don't even call them refugees, because they were forcibly displaced as a result of the invasion – plan to return, that's for sure. That is why it is so important for us and for our partners to create conditions for their return. Without Ukrainians now living abroad, it would be difficult to solve the task of reconstruction and recovery," added Svyrydenko.

As reported, at the outset of Russia’s full-scale armed aggression, millions of Ukrainians were forced to leave Ukraine, escaping from the war. For the first time in its history, the European Union activated the so-called Temporary Protection Directive, which granted citizens of Ukraine, mainly women and children, the right to stay on the EU territory, to have access to basic social services and employment. Ukrainians are actively integrating into the societies of host countries, which may make it difficult for some of them to return to Ukraine after the war ends.