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Ukrainian industrialists and businessmen have some work to do regarding progress for joint cooperation with Canadian and other foreign partners. The business community is interested in new markets, technology, and ready to share the achievements that have already been made, First Vice President of the ULIE Serhiy Prokhorov said to a national television channel about the prospects of the FTA implementation with Canada.
According to him, the opening of markets should have already been translated into real bilateral cooperation, clear and concrete proposals of national industry associations and companies, conclusion of contracts and successful projects. Those projects already exist, so it would be inappropriate to state that Ukrainian enterprises are not able to reach a serious international level without external help, Serhiy Prokhorov emphasized. As an example, he cited the activities of research and production enterprise Radiy, which develops, produces and supplies the nuclear facilities with software and hardware developed independently based on the digital information and control platform.
"The enterprise has the best safety record in the world, and its goal is precisely to ensure nuclear power safety. Radiy has been cooperating for a number of years, including with Canada. In particular, it is completing the certification process aimed at meeting international standards," Prokhorov said.
He paid particular attention to the need to comply with requirements on the quality of products, adopted by the international community and the EU, noting that it is one of the main conditions for strengthening the competitiveness of any product - from the high-tech to agriculture sectors.
When asked about the financial capabilities of Ukrainian industrialists and entrepreneurs to certify their products, Serhiy Prokhorov assured that Ukrainian businesses should not avoid spending on standardization, because it will enhance their competitive advantages and provide access to new markets - not only Western ones, but also in other parts of the world. In addition, during some international exhibitions in which Ukraine participates, it is sometimes possible to agree with foreign partners on assistance in this matter.
The ULIE representatives believe that the opportunities opened for Ukraine and its economy as a result of such cooperation with Canada can hardly be estimated, because it means, among other things, modernization of the technological side of the domestic industrial production. In a long-term perspective, the Agreement will become an impetus for modernization of Ukrainian companies to produce goods with high added value that will be exported to Canada.
Also, our country has really good forest resources. However, without the advanced technologies, Ukrainian wood-processing companies lose about 40% of raw materials during processing, which is unacceptable. To streamline the production process they need help of our foreign partners - the experience and technology.
"It is also necessary to seek reduction in energy consumption in our production, while gradually enhancing knowledge intensity of Ukrainian goods. High productivity and skilled workforce are the basis for business success," according to Serhiy Prokhorov.
He notes that the FTA with Canada is another large-scale platform enabling the implementation of measures on modernization and development of the national economy.
"We must learn to do our own" homework" and have a strategic plan for the Ukrainian economy and production capacity. We should work quickly and efficiently, not just wait for the global agreements, but implement concrete projects," Prokhorov said.