Ukrainian Tech Ecosystem Achievements 2021: GIZ/EU4Business

Iryna Supruniuk

1721 posts

Communication Lead, TechUkraine

This was a defining year for Ukrainian tech, plenty of memorable moments: GitLab’s IPO, Grammarly became decacorn, 252 000 tech specialists in Ukraine, new VCs, media, tech educational institutions, global tech moguls hatched audacious deals.

TechUkraine initiated the project “Ukrainian Tech Ecosystem Achievements 2021,” where we share the stories of the prominent stakeholders of the sphere – tech giants, startups, clusters, funds, media, accelerators, celebrating the success of the year and discovering what lies ahead in 2022 and beyond.

Let’s deep dive into some of the most significant achievements-making developments of the year!

“EU4Business: SME Competitiveness and Internationalisation” programme by European Union and German government (implemented by GIZ)

What are the key achievements of 2021?

COVID-19 Business Clinics projects (Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Ivano-Frankivsk, Vinnytsya, Chernigiv, Mykolayiv). The Business Clinics operates on the basis of EU4Business Business Information Support Centres to provide entrepreneurs with a range of mostly free of charge services, that include: Short individual and group consultancy; Webinars, trainings and forums; Vouchers for in-depth business consultancy.
6 cities were supported to establish on-line platforms for local entrepreneurship (including data on SME, goods and services, grant competitions, trainings, other).
26 clusters all over Ukraine got support from EU4Business Program
The project “Boosting local traditional industries with IT capacities”. implemented by TechUkraine in partnership with APPAU – Association of Industrial Automation of Ukraine, International Association Culture&Creativity Association with the financial support of the European Union and German government through GIZ that aims to increase the competitiveness of traditional industries in strong collaboration with Ukrainian IT companies.

Which challenges were the most impactful during the year?

COVID-19 restrictions was the main challenge.

How will Ukrainian tech be developing? Approach, projections and perspectives for 2022.

The EU4Business Program will intensify its support for Digitalization of the Ukrainian Economy, especially in priority sectors such as machinery and creative industries.

About

“EU4Business: SME Competitiveness and Internationalisation” project is co-financed by the European Union and German Government and is implemented by German Federal Company “Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit” (GIZ). The programme aims to create better conditions for the development of Ukrainian small and medium-sized enterprises, support innovation and export promotion, resulting in sustainable and equitable economic growth. As part of the Team Europe approach, the initiative will also contribute to Ukraine’s COVID-19 recovery.

EU4Business is an umbrella initiative that includes all EU support to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in the Eastern Partnership countries – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine.