During the war with the Russian Federation, Ukraine risks losing about half of its GDP – 45-50%, and the population will be forced to live on a small allowance.
There is a real risk that the army of unemployed in Ukraine will grow in the coming months and salaries will not exceed $150. This was announced by co-founder and owner of Concorde Capital investment company Igor Mazepa in an interview with “Forbes Ukraine”.
“Two-thirds of the country is not working, about 5 million people have gone abroad. In 3-4 months of the war we will get a huge number of unemployed people forced to live on modest benefits paid by the state. There is a risk that we will return in 1996, salaries $150 (4.5 thousand UAH, – ed.) In equivalent, and this will be considered the norm,” – said the businessman.
It should be noted that according to the State Statistics Service, in 2022 the highest monthly salary was recorded in Kyiv and amounted to $705 (UAH 21,347), which is almost twice the figure of Lviv region at $427 (UAH 12,936). The information was published only in January, ie there are no data after the February invasion of Russia.
According to Mazepa, during the war, Ukraine may lose about half of its GDP – 45-50%.
“Roughly speaking, the day of the war costs us $300 million in unearned GDP. Not to mention the destroyed houses, infrastructure and, most importantly, the dead,” – said the businessman.
Currently, the main task of the current government is a military victory over Russia.
He also said the government should focus on lifting any trade restrictions with the world, such as quotas and tariffs, in order to increase the attractiveness of doing business in Ukraine.
“There should be no illusions that the whole world owes us something now. Without internal change, no one will give us hundreds of billions to rebuild, and Ukraine is facing dark times – decades of poverty and emptiness,” – said the head of Concorde Capital.
At the end of 2021, Mazepa noted that for the first time in 30 years of Ukraine’s independence, foreign direct investment will be negative, as it is considered a monkey with a grenade.
