UNDP has been helping us to achieve sustainable development for over 20 years, working in the fields of governance and reforms by supporting initiatives on energy efficiency and environmental protection; more recently the organization has been contributing to the recovery of territories and people affected by the war in the East. Now UNDP funds the grant program to support entrepreneurship among IDPs and people living in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts: new bakeries, children’s centers, small production lines are being open. Also, almost fifty social institutions have been brought back to the operational state. Speaking of the entire Ukraine, UNDP and the EU have helped to carry out about 360 energy efficiency projects in 2015, 113 of which were innovative. At the request of the Ministry for Healthcare, UNDP has been taking care of yet another “chronic” corruption problem of ours since the end of 2015: the transparent procurement of drugs. About this, and about how the war in Ukraine is perceived on the international background, The Day interviewed Janthomas Hiemstra, Director of UNDP in Ukraine, who has been in office for nearly a year and has had great experience in countries with ongoing military conflicts. So, let him speak directly.
“PEOPLE FEEL THAT UKRAINE IS THEIR HOME”
“I have seen a lot of countries in crisis, just before that had I worked in Syria. And the one thing I learned is that it is very difficult to compare the countries, because the situation in each of them is different. The first thing that struck me when I came here: Ukrainians in general cope well with the conflict that rages in the east. I mean the solidarity you have found to internally displaced persons. Millions of people were forced out of their homes, and, of course, there are some problems, but in general they have been accepted very well – by people, by communities and cities. The IDPs were not placed in some camps, people accepted them in their homes – and they reintegrated into the communities, despite all the difficulties. The country copes well with this. After all, if it had not, the IDPs would have poured into Europe. But they did not. People remained in the country; they feel that Ukraine is their home, and that Ukraine can take care of its citizens. This is very important, although the situation is not perfect. I hope you will not forget that it is an encouraging sign for the future.
“The second thing I noticed is that fortunately, the conflict is very localized. The rest of the country, where there is no conflict, still can function as normal. Of course, the crisis affects everything, but it is not that destructive, you are able to rectify it. This is another important difference from other countries.
“The third thing is that the conflict has deepened the negative phenomena you had had before. For 20 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine has been fighting to find the real way out of the USSR. But the Soviet Union is everywhere – in the minds of people, whereas the country was not ready to really get rid of it. And it is difficult. The result is the corruption, the existence of oligarchs, and the weak political system. We do not know today whether the incumbent Prime Minister will be the Prime Minister tomorrow, the decentralization meets many obstacles, there is poverty everywhere, and the industry is old and dirty, not looking attractive to Europe. All these problems have been intensified by the conflict.
“That is, the problems we have are long-term, and the shock is short-term. The country is passing through a very difficult phase. But the fact is that even during the conflict Ukraine remains the same country we know. And it lends to optimism. I think many other countries in this situation would have found themselves in decline, but not Ukraine.”
“WE HAVE PROVIDED SUPPORT TO 500 SMALL BUSINESSES”
“We are very proud of the work we are doing in the eastern Ukraine and regarding the IDPs. I believe that even these small initiatives give people a chance. We have provided support to 500 small businesses – very diverse ones: bakeries, bicycle shops, and firms that provide special equipment for maternity hospitals. All these small things are very important for the country in symbolic terms. We recently spoke with a group of 15 small businesspersons, and I told them: ‘The business climate is adverse, the economic situation is bad, but it does not necessarily mean that there is no place for small businesses. Small business does not need a strong state to function, and it is not about the macroeconomic situation, it is about people like you, who can give hope to the communities.’
“In addition to business development, we are also ready to provide assistance in the front-line area, namely in hospitals. A positive example is the Sloviansk Raion Hospital, in Mykolaivka. This institution has played an important role during the fighting, and we met a surgeon who had operated 69 civilians in two days after artillery strikes. The building was badly damaged by shelling, and we are restoring it. We believe that it is essential for the residents of Sloviansk and generally for the people of Donbas to see that we are moving in the right direction. Unfortunately, the conflict is not yet complete, but it is very important to show Ukrainians that we are moving forward.”
“WE ARE DEVELOPING A CREDIT LINE SPECIFICALLY FOR GREEN TECHNOLOGY”
“Energy efficiency is a good thing, because it pays for itself. If you buy energy-efficient windows, install them correctly, properly shut them every day – you will see the savings on your heating bill every months. I am proud of the work that we have done in this direction, because many buildings became energy efficient with UNDP’s help. We have also been advocating energy efficient lighting for many years, and the country is moving in this direction.
“The third thing that I’m proud of, though it is still not very common in Ukraine – is the usage of biomass for heating. Ukraine has a lot of agricultural products. Every year you are throwing away as much power as you need. You will be able to live without gas if you use these wastes. We know very good examples, in which schools, kindergartens, and other public institutions have installed a biomass boiler and it was sufficient to provide the heating for their premises for the entire winter. But we are not only providing the opportunity to install such boilers at certain facilities. We are now developing a very promising project in cooperation with the banks. After all, one cannot install a boiler only from their salary, it takes a loan. I hope that by next year you will be able to come to the bank and get a loan, together with complete information support. Together with commercial banks we are developing a credit line specifically dedicated to green technologies. I am optimistic about this, because that is a way we can push this technology forward. I hope that in four or five years, people will buy biomass boilers just as they are buying gas boilers now.”
“ON DRUG PROCUREMENT WE HAVE ALREADY SAVED ONE MILLION DOLLARS FOR UKRAINIANS”
“When we entered into an agreement concerning the drug purchase, we announced that the procurement will be conducted by all the rules and all the information will be made public. We report on every signed contract: the contractors, the amount of money spent, how much money is left, and on what it will be spent. Recently, we have placed all the orders needed for anti-TB drugs, 18 types in total. And the most interesting thing is that 4 out of 18 have not been bough in recent years, they were not available here. Now thanks to the measures taken, these four types of drugs have been purchased like all the rest. The second part of the good news is that on the purchase of 18 medicines we have saved 1 million dollars for Ukrainians. This means that we can buy more drugs. UNDP can procure medicines on the global market, and that means we can actually find the cheapest option with the best quality. The third important point is that four of these tenders were won by Ukrainian companies. This means that Ukraine has the pharmaceutical industry that can compete with the rest of the world on transparent and equal terms. The country has a good potential.”
“YOU NEED AN AGENCY NOT ONLY TO FIGHT CORRUPTION, BUT ALSO ONE TO PREVENT IT”
“For many years, in cooperation with other organizations we have been presenting in Ukraine a very interesting and efficient methodology to fight corruption. Among those methods is an open budget, and we have some good examples when the community control over spending brought significant results.
“In UNDP we often say: yes, you need an agency not only to fight, but also to prevent corruption. When only two members of the NABU are elected, and you are unable to elect the remaining three – I think this means that the majority of Ukrainians does not want this agency. And we in UNDP cannot do anything to help here. We can help in many areas, but above all Ukrainians should help themselves. You have to want to help yourself.”
