The selection of the winners of the Create Ukraine program has concluded – 10 ambitious young Ukrainians with international experience have joined the team of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine on October 14. Over the next 10 months, they will work alongside government officials on implementing economic reforms and addressing the challenges posed by the war.
The pilot project Create Ukraine is co-funded by the European Union and the Government of Lithuania within the framework of the EU4Youth program, aimed at supporting young people. The project is managed by the Lithuanian organization Central Project Management Agency and implemented by the KSE Foundation at the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine.
Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine: “I am delighted to welcome the winners of Create Ukraine to our team. The valuable knowledge and ideas they bring will benefit the work of the Ministry and our country. Currently, up to 6.5 million Ukrainians are living abroad, including a significant number of young people whose energy and intellect are essential for Ukraine’s recovery. Our goal is to create conditions for the return of these talented individuals, and the Create Ukraine program presents one of the opportunities for them to realize their potential.”
Create Ukraine is a continuation of the Lithuanian experience — “Create Lithuania” was launched in 2012 as a strategic government program and has proven to be highly effective.
Donatas Butkus, Minister-Counselor of the Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania in Ukraine: “Lithuania, as longstanding supporter of Ukraine, be it Ukraine’s victory or recovery & rehabilitation projects, is honoured as well to add to this support package – Create Ukraine initiative, developed based on the success of our own “Create Lithuania” program. Let us build European future for Ukraine, one that is marked by strong institutions, progressive reforms, & a vibrant public sector led by the passionate youth of your nation.”
The winners of Create Ukraine are professionals who have returned to Ukraine from the United Kingdom, China, Austria, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Slovakia, and Canada:
Anastasiia Bilanenko – an auditor and financial analyst with 10 years of experience in Australia and the UK.
Iryna Volokha – a communications specialist and founder of the Ukrainian-Canadian company Eduwest, which provides tutoring services and a full range of publishing solutions for international authors.
Oksana Havryliv – a specialist in international relations and a business manager with diverse international professional experience in government, business, and international relations.
Olena Dziubko – a project manager with unique international experience gained in NGOs in Finland and Slovakia.
Roksolana Smerechynska – a specialist in international management, whose experience spans international relations, political analysis, and strategic communications.
Roman Shemakov – an infrastructure development specialist and financial analyst. For the past five years, Roman has worked on infrastructure and technology development in the USA, Taiwan, Singapore, and China.
Stanislava Kruhlian – a graduate of the master’s program in international relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Tetiana Haidym – a project management specialist and consultant in banking and insurance, with experience in global consulting companies in Slovakia.
Yuliia Mishchuk – a graduate of the master’s program in Strategic Communications at the International University of Languages and Media in Milan.
Yuliya Paska – an international law specialist, whose professional experience includes an internship in the Parliament of Canada and studies in Italy.
More about the participants of Create Ukraine
On October 14, the winners of Create Ukraine met with the First Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko and her deputies.
The participants were introduced to government projects they will be working on as members of the Ministry of Economy’s advisory-consultative team. The areas where Ukrainians with international experience are involved include attracting investments, European integration, scaling manufacturing enterprises, launching the humanitarian demining market, overcoming barriers to entering international markets, increasing women’s economic activity, developing small and medium-sized enterprises, and deregulation.
Tetyana Berezhna, Deputy Minister of Economy: “It is important for us that talented, educated Ukrainians with valuable experience from studying and working abroad return to Ukraine to shape policies and work on the projects of the Ministry of Economy, applying this experience. We want to integrate such people into government and state institutions because we fully understand that we can build industrial parks, develop non-resource exports, ensure energy resilience for businesses, and more, but none of this will work without human capital.”
The winners also visited the Kyiv School of Economics, where they were introduced to a comprehensive development program, including personal KPIs, mentoring programs, training sessions, seminars, and a government relations (GR) program from KSE that they will participate in over the course of the 10-month program.
Svitlana Denysenko, Director of the KSE Foundation: “Each participant of Create Ukraine is a professional in their field. Among them are graduates of top universities in the UK, Italy, and the USA, business strategists with experience working on large-scale projects in leading European companies, and specialists in international relations who have advocated for Ukraine’s interests on the diplomatic front. Having the opportunity to continue building successful careers abroad, they have returned home to work for the benefit of Ukraine.”
Create Ukraine is based on the experience of Create Lithuania — about 40% of the participants of this initiative continue working in the public sector after completing the program.
Dalia Krapavickaitė, project manager at CPVA: “As an alumna of Create Lithuania program, I am very happy to greet these young Ukrainians who will become the change-makers of their country. As it was in Lithuania, they come here to use their unique skills and international networks to create new opportunities for those who stayed.”
The Create Ukraine program is initiated by the EU, Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and co-funded EU4Youth Programme implemented by Central Project Management Agency. “Create Ukraine” project is implemented by the KSE Foundation.