Ukraine expects Japan to continue budgetary support - Finance Minister
This was emphasized by the Minister of Finance of Ukraine, Sergii Marchenko, who met with Japan’s Ambassador to Ukraine, Matsuda Kuninori and Senior Vice President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Shohei Hara, Ukrinform reported with reference to the press service of the Ministry of Finance.
The parties discussed the current economic situation in Ukraine, priority areas of recovery and the implementation of joint projects.
"Ukraine is steadily enhancing its financial capacity through higher internal budget revenues. Meanwhile, international assistance remains crucial to ensure timely and full financing of all priority expenditures. We appreciate the leadership of the Government of Japan in this matter. In total, budgetary assistance from Japan reaches $6.3 billion since February 2022, of which almost $1 billion are grants," Marchenko said.
The Minister of Finance noted that he expects the Government of Japan to continue its budgetary support and to expand its partnership in Ukraine's recovery. Japan's experience in implementing and managing recovery projects is extremely valuable for Ukraine.
The parties also discussed potential cooperation in supporting Ukraine's private sector through access to concessional financing.
Japan has the second largest amount of financial support among countries in the world (after the USA) and the fourth among all international partners (after the EU, the USA and the IMF).
In 2022, Japan provided Ukraine with $581 million in concessional financing through JICA.
In 2023, JICA launched the Project Programme for Emergency Recovery (Project Phases 1, 2) and in 2024 - Phase 3 of the project for a total of about $640 million in grants. The funds are aimed at rapid recovery, in particular to overcome the consequences of Russia’s full-scale armed aggression, transport and critical infrastructure, and the provision of equipment for humanitarian demining.
As reported, Japan has pledged and provided financial, humanitarian and other assistance to Ukraine in the total amount of more than $12 billion, starting from March 2022, including $4.5 billion since the start of 2024.
