Our Partner Country 2023

Pioneer Ukraine

Ukraine was the partner country of the Smart Country Convention 2023 and, among other things, had its own exhibition stand to show how digital administration can be maintained and even expanded even in times of crisis. Cybersecurity was also a key topic at the event.

„Ukraine aims to be one of the most digital nations in the world, with 100% of its public services digitised. And even now, with the outbreak of full-scale war, Ukraine continues to build a digital state. Even under constant cyber attack from Russia, new online services are launched almost every week. At the same time, Ukraine's IT sector remains vibrant and a backbone of our economy.

Smart Country Convention was therefore the ideal opportunity to share our knowledge on the digitization of the public sector with our European allies and also a great chance for our companies to enter the German market.“

Maria Shevchuk, Acting Executive Director at IT Ukraine Association

Digitalization in Ukraine

Ukraine is now a globally recognized technical center where complex IT solutions are developed and globally recognized IT products are manufactured. The Ukrainian IT sector has quickly become the country's second largest export industry, and its products and companies have made a defining impression on the global stage.

Digitalization is a fundamental national concept in Ukraine. In a groundbreaking move, Ukraine was the first nation in the world to make electronic passports equal to traditional paper passports. In addition, the Ukrainian mobile application "Diia" has captured the hearts of citizens by providing seamless online access to government services. As of May 2023, "Diia" is installed on 70% of Ukrainian smartphones and has an impressive user base of 19 million people. Estonia was the first country to launch a version of Ukrainian "Diia" earlier this year.

Cybersecurity and digital quality of life

Ukraine also stands out in the field of cybersecurity, ranking 24th in the world in the Cybersecurity 2022 indicator, surpassing countries such as Canada, Luxembourg and South Korea. In addition, Ukraine ranks a proud 46th among 110 countries in the Digital Quality of Life (DQL) 2023 index, establishing itself as a leader in the digital sphere. The country is also a pioneer in contactless payment with gadgets and is among the top five countries worldwide.

Before the Russian war of aggression, the Ukrainian IT sector was one of the largest exporters of IT services in Europe, growing by 25-30% annually.

The share of computer services in Ukraine's GDP is almost 5%. The Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine aims to reach 10% of GDP by 2030. IT now accounts for almost half of Ukraine's services exports, and the share of digital areas in services is steadily increasing. The development of the IT industry in Ukraine will continue under all conditions. In 2022, the IT industry brought export revenues of $7.3 billion to the Ukrainian economy and could even grow by almost 6% compared to the pre-war year. Currently, there are more than 2,000 IT companies registered in Ukraine, employing about 362,000 IT professionals.