President of StrategEast Anatoly Motkin published an op-ed in the Atlantic Council blog, where he has put forward an idea of launching a Digital Marshall Plan for Ukraine amid Russian aggression.
“Clearly, rebuilding Ukraine will be a Herculean task requiring unprecedented financing and the full participation of the international community. It is also vital that plans for the new Ukraine should reflect the country’s immediate needs and competitive advantages. This is why it makes sense to begin work without delay on a Digital Marshall Plan that will harness Ukraine’s tech excellence and enable Ukrainians to continue the important progress made in recent years,” he explains.
Mr. Motkin admits that the immediate priority while restoring the country will be to repair the catastrophic damage done to Ukrainian infrastructure objects. At the same time, the most effective long-term use of resources may be to focus on strengthening Ukraine’s digital economy and the country’s IT industry. Investing in this sector will have an immediate economic impact and will create the largest number of jobs.
Talking about the components of a Digital Marshall Plan, Mr Motkin names large-scale strategic investment in the digital transformation of Ukraine including all public services, healthcare, and education, investment into the rapid retraining of Ukrainians from other professional backgrounds”, as well as establishing a “fund of funds” for IT entrepreneurs that will invest in venture funds operating in Ukraine.
