You're reading: Ukrainian railways not to be privatized, says minister

The law on the specifics of the creation of the public joint-stock company for railway transport and the documents drawn for its implementation do not foresee the privatization of Ukrainian railways, Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Voldoymyr Kozak told reporters after talks with the trade union of railways and transport builders in Kyiv on Friday, Jan.18. 

“Today many political forces have started ‘informing’ society about so-called ‘privatization’ of the railways and reforms that will allegedly result in the reduction of railway workers and social guarantees. I want to assure that this will never happen. Reforms have been carried out in all European and CIS countries, apart from Ukraine, and there is no fall in wages and reduction of employees anywhere, on the contrary, wages almost doubled and grew even more in those places where reforms were conducted,” Kozak said.

He said that it was impossible to privatize the railways.

“Reforms were performed in Russia, Kazakhstan, Germany, and their railways are under state ownership,” he said.

Kozak said that at present, the preparations for the reform of the railway sector are underway, and the process will be transparent and open for trade unions and the public as a whole, with all of the documents being published.

As reported, the bill on the specifics of the creation of the public joint-stock company for railway transport was passed at the end of February 2012, and in early March it was signed into law by the president.

A public joint-stock company for railway transport will be created, with 100% of its shares owned by the state. The new entity will be formed through a merger of State Railways Administration Ukrzaliznytsia and public railway enterprises, institutions, and organizations.