Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has launched Diia City, a special economic framework for IT companies, which he believes will boost Ukraine’s status as a tech powerhouse.
The project is certainly ambitious. “We’re developing an e-customs model, we want to make Ukraine an IT hub… We’re launching Diia.City,” Zelensky said, opening the Diia.Summit 2022.
“Diia.City is the digital capital of the electronic state,“
the president pronounced.
He said it would enable the share of IT in Ukraine’s GDP to rise from 4% to 10%, and industry revenues to $16.5 billion by 2025.
He reminded the IT audience of Diia’s origins as an App and portal for providing public services.
“Three years ago I was told I was crazy for wanting to build a digital Ukraine, but today, what we call ‘the state in a smartphone’ has become a reality,” he added, as he listed digital public services now available to Ukrainians.
This showcase for Ukraine’s digital transformation was clearly designed to grab the attention of the global business community, making it clear that the country remains open for business, despite the presence of 130,000 Russian troops on its borders.
President Zelensky added that he wanted to create an environment that would also act as a driver for foreign talent to flock to Kyiv and other local tech hubs.
Attendants at the launch of Diia.city watch the Ukrainian president unveil the new government-backed digital platform for e-commerce and governance.
Photo: Kyiv Post/Maksim Pilipenko
“That’s why we want not only Ukrainian companies but also foreign companies to join Diia City,” he said, which he described as “one of the best tax and legal regimes on the planet.”
“We will transform Ukraine into a country of IT companies and start-ups,” he underlined.
Zelensky had earlier met with representatives of Ukraine’s IT industry. He told participants that the state would fully support the IT industry, which creates a lot of new employment. “We really want to build a digital state. And we’re succeeding in that,” he added.
