The current year has become one of the most difficult in the entire history of Ukraine’s independence in every sense. Before the New Year, it is worth summarizing and understanding what gains and losses the country is entering 2024 with.
Economy
After last year’s shock, when many enterprises did not work for almost a month and logistics routes were destroyed and rebuilt, 2023 became a recovery period. If the recorded drop was 29% in 2022, then the GDP grew to 4.7% this year.
The growth rate of inflation has decreased, but this is because domestic borrowing has reached 11 billion in the last 12 months alone. External partners provided 33.8 billion USD in aid; this became the basis of stability.
Export
The termination of the “grain agreement” in July, which made it possible to export agricultural products abroad via the Black Sea, was a blow to Ukraine.
Another unpleasant surprise happened in the fall when checkpoints were blocked on the Polish side, which practically paralyzed Ukraine’s imports and exports. This led to an increase in fuel prices and further growth in the prices of products and services.
European integration
The sphere in which Ukraine celebrated a well-deserved victory was European integration. First of all, it should be noted that the law has officially entered into force, according to which English is recognized as the international language of communication in Ukraine.
At the end of the year, the start of negotiations on membership in the European Union was agreed. However, it is currently impossible to give an accurate forecast of how long all the procedures will last.
War
The main event, expected in Ukraine and the world, was the spring-summer counterattack. As time has shown, the planned goals that Ukraine set for itself were not achieved.
On the other hand, it should be understood that the Russian Federation also did not achieve its goals in Ukraine set for 2023. There has also been a significant change over the past 12 months. It refers to the fact that the country is starting to launch its military production complex more actively. This will make it possible to be less dependent on supplies from outside.
Ukrainians abroad
During 2023, the process of outflow of citizens abroad continued. Over the past two half-years, the number of people who officially got a job has almost doubled, so the taxes paid by Ukrainians to the budgets of other states have increased.
At the same time, many countries that provide support and housing to people fleeing war are cutting support programs. This process will become even more intense next year, which will cause more frequent returns to Ukraine due to difficulties with the financial maintenance of families abroad.
2023 has become so difficult for Ukraine. We look forward to the New Year with hope.
