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The president vows efforts to tackle smuggling and corruption.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky during his Canada visit spoke with CEOs from the Economic Club of Canada, urging Canadians to invest in Ukraine
"Invest in Ukraine! Why? Because we are one of the most promising countries with great growth potential," Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The president noted that the new leaders of the Security Service, State Border Guard Service, State Tax and Customs Service had been appointed in Ukraine.
"Their key task is to overcome smuggling and corruption, immediately stop pressure on 'white' business. People associated with raider attacks and manipulations with state registers are being gradually dismissed," the Head of State emphasized.
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According to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, potential revenues of the state budget of Ukraine as a result of termination of smuggling, overcoming corruption and de-shadowing of the economy are tentatively estimated at almost $10 billion a year.
“We need fair courts. Now, neither society nor investors trust the Ukrainian judiciary. We will change this. Our team is drafting a separate plan to this end," the president noted.
Among the industries that may be interesting to investors, Zelensky mentioned IT, green energy, and mining.
In particular, the Canadian company Brookfield has already invested tens of millions of dollars in the construction of an IT hub in Lviv.
"We are very interested in implementing at least five such projects in major cities, where IT business and relevant universities are concentrated," the President said.
According to Volodymyr Zelensky, a special issue is the restoration of Donbas, therefore, investment projects in this region will be considered as a priority.
The Head of State also suggested creating a special investment fund for the joint investment of Canadians of Ukrainian origin in Ukraine projects.
"As President of Ukraine, I can guarantee full support for the implementation of such a project and protection of investments. To this end, a separate team is being created," Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized.
The president stressed that Ukraine would continue its cooperation with the IMF and the World Bank.
"I have no doubt in their support," he said.