Press Release
Thesis of the President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma Speech at the meeting of the national council on the coordination of the activity of national and local authorities
Kyiv, March 6, 2001
Last year was the first year of implementation of the strategy in social and economical development for 2000-2004 based on election program of the President of Ukraine. This strategy became the base for establishment of the majority in Parliament and program of the Governmental work. As it has been foreseen, the last year was crucial in economical dynamics. The real increase of microeconomic and branch parameters after the long economical crisis was achieved. GDP increased by 6.0%, production - 12,9%, agriculture gross output - 9,2%. The positive results of the year 2000 were pension arrearage payments, activation of investment especially in credit activity, increase of cash payments in economy and export potential, reduction of foreign debts.
On the one hand, the above mentioned results were achieved due to the reduction of foreign debts by more than $2 bln and increase of current reserves. On the other hand, there was no real foreign creditation of economic from the side of international financial institutions. It is very important to take into account that positive changes in economy took places in the second half of 1999.
In spite of the fact that we have positive changes, the year 2000 didn't become a crucial time for the sphere of social relations. There was no real improvement of public life. That means that intensifying of social reform course which was determined in the last year President Message and approved by Deputy Corps, has not applied effectively. One of the reason of this is a lack of reliable mechanisms which are able to solve the accumulating problems of social sphere and turn into reliable incentives. We don't say about stabile development of our economy and the whole society while growing the differentiation of incomes and deepening the poverty.
The join task of executive and legislative authorities and local self-government is the realization in accordance with the planning strategy of economic and social development such numbers of measures which provides the transformation of the achieved in the year 2000 paces of economic dynamic to stabile trend of constant increase.
A key problem of the realization of this task is firmness of competitiveness of home economy, its innovation renovation, creation of reliable investment climate. The main role is in the following:
First. Provide strengthening of the national monetary unit and preserve the stability exchange rate. It is necessary to give the tasks for Government and National Bank to provide not only decrease of inflation rate in 2001 by 13-14% but to create the necessary prerequisite for its stabile keeping for the next period on the rate not higher than 10% per year.
Second. Not symbolic but significant (I stress on it) decrease of the tax burden, creation of the effective and transparent tax administrative system.
Third. To bring financial state obligations into compliance with the state resources and providing on this base the real but not fictive (as it is) balance and shortageless of state budget. Providing of this measures should be submitted to a considerable aim - further limitation of the debt dependence of the state. I strongly oppose and will oppose any steps aside from this task.
Fourth. I have adhered and adhere to the position of further foreign-economic activity liberalization. Previous experience shows that the transparency of national economy is the determining stimulus to increase its competitive ability and activate the influx of foreign investments. I figure on the support of the definite position from the side of the Deputy Corps. The future of the Ukrainian economy is in it's maximum openness both to the East and the West. Moreover, it takes shape from our geopolitical location. In this connection the priority task for the Government in 2001 is the final decision of questions, which are concerned with the entrance of Ukraine to WTO. It assists, from one side, to fulfill the complete realization of export potential of our enterprises, from the other - in attracting of the foreign investments.
Mechanisms of the formation of market relations critical mass in our country, further development of the economy, based on all-sufficient market foundation were grounded at the last year President Message. However, many of them are out of the attention. First of all it concerns with the problem of the establishment of the effective and competitive environment. The question of the effective steps fulfillment, which are directed towards the invigoration of the economic environment by means of the realization of bankrupt procedure of the ineffective and unprofitable enterprises, which proved their inability to use new favorable conditions for financial invigoration, is actual too.
Investment climate in Ukraine is directly depending on the correction of deformations in property relations, guaranteeing safe state protection of the individual property, interests of business partners, investors and creditors, stimulation of the private initiative. At the same time we should permanently take care of the improvement of national capital positions (financial, banking, industrial), it's concentration and centralization. We should turn to the account that only big national capital combining with the small-scale and middle business could be the foundation of the real sovereignty of the national economy and be the basis of it's construction.
The active policy of combating with corruption and economic processes shadowing first of all must be initiated by executive power institutions. At the present stage of the development it should be the determining direction of the activity of the Government and every ministry, local executive power institutions. At the same time we should memorize lessons from our own experience and ,without any doubt, acknowledge the fact, that the dominant function of the state in economy is the protection of economic freedom. In this question, our strategy should not be based on the support of the selected enterprises and market participants, but we should protect citizen property rights and ownership rights, business initiative. Step by step the state should move off the practice of the interference in business.
Now we should concentrate our efforts on returning our people to the real political sphere. It is inevitable prerequisite for normal civil society.
It is understandable that civil society doesn't formed by direction the top. The development of citizen initiative and state help creates civil society. The result is to prepare and adopt the program of the assistance to the democracy process in Ukraine, providing the transparent authority activity for society, creating constant and open society dialogue.
By the way, I am ready, to create Citizen Committee attached to the President from the most competent Ukrainians - from all social groups and professions. Members of the Committee can previously consider all projects of state decision on the subject of its adequacy to democratic norms and standards.
It is necessary to change the character of the relations between authorities and Mass Media. We should agree with that people who consider that Ukraine haven't really independent Mass Media. State Mass Media sometimes work at undialogue regime which is not showing different points of view but as the propagandists of one position - as they used to work at Soviet times. Now it is impossible. The work style of the state Mass Media we should change.
However, so called independent Mass Media are far to be independent because, as a rule, they fulfill social order of their employers. In a better sense they avoid to discuss important social problems.
In spite of this I am strongly against the pressure on the press freedom. On the first sight, it is the simple method to impose their opinion. However, it is a straight way to the dead end. Apparently, we should create the social television and radio and it takes a plenty of problems out.
As the President I want to say that the state will do its work but it should fulfill the oncoming move from the side of parties and the whole society. I am sure that we can do it and we will do it. We should turn the current page of problems as soon as possible, obviously making from it principal conclusions and focus first of all on the fulfilling of economic reforms.
We should attain the constructive work and cooperation between legislative and executive powers.
The great political value for us has the maintenance and strengthening of the parliamentary majority, overcoming of the internal contradictions in the Verhovna Rada and provision of the Government stable work.
We should stop talking about some new principles of the Government formation and just work. I support the Prime-minister in those, that firstly it should be determined for what the coalition government shall be established and then have a talk about it. As it known, there is the legislative project about the parliamentary majority in the Verhovna Rada. It regulates the procedure of its establishment, permissions and assumptions. And, correspondingly, permissions and assumptions of the opposition.
But there is no time for it. Obviously, all it complicates the legislative process and the adoption of Administrative, Land, Criminal, Taxation and Budget Codes, a number of priority legislative acts.
I want the people deputies to understand that if this codes would not be adopted during this session, Ukraine will lose a lot. And we will not be taken into consideration, we will not be respected.
There is an essential necessity for Ukraine to demonstrate earnestly, that our country is the active participant of the world, European and regional relations and it has his own views on the international life and could earnestly perform on behalf of itself.
For more information, please contact:
Taras Malyshevskyi, Press Secretary of the Embassy of Ukraine
310 Somerset Street West, Ottawa, ON K2P 0J9
Tel. (613) 230-2961, fax (613) 230-2400,
E-mail: ukremb@cyberus.ca
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