Ukraine's GDP grows by about 5% in 2023 - Svyrydenko

This was reported by First Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko during the discussion "Economy in 2023: Overview of Key Figures" organized by the Center for Economic Strategy in cooperation with the German Economic Team.

Svyrydenko emphasized the rapid adaptation of Ukrainian business to the current extremely difficult conditions. More than 90% of enterprises that had shut down at the beginning of the war have already resumed operations.

According to her, the largest growth has occurred in the field of public administration and defense. This is primarily about military salaries and funding for defense programs.

"Construction also developed at a fairly high pace. Due to investment demand, which was formed due to significant budget funding, damaged critical infrastructure was actively restored (these are projects at both the central and regional levels). In agriculture, favorable weather conditions had a positive impact on the yields of almost all crops. Farmers harvested 80 million tons of grains and oilseeds. The growth in domestic trade was driven by the recovery in consumer demand and supply of goods, and in the manufacturing industry by the growth in demand for investment products," Svyrydenko elaborated.

At the same time, a key role in ensuring the stability of the Ukrainian economy was played by the rhythmic flow of international financial assistance. Over the two years of the full-scale war, it reached $75 billion.

"67% of the funds came from Ukraine's main partners, the EU and the U.S. This allowed us to cover the priority needs of the budget, ensure social spending and maintain financial stability, even create the preconditions for macroeconomic stability this year. As a result, while in 2022 the economic decline reached 28.8%, in 2023, according to our preliminary estimates, the domestic GDP increased by about 5%. This is the so-called recovery growth," the Deputy Prime Minister said.

As reported, the World Bank has predicted that this year the Ukrainian economy will grow by 3.2%, and in 2025 - by 6.5%. At the same time, last year's growth is estimated by the WB to be somewhat more pessimistic than the Ministry of Economy's - at 4.8%.