Oleg Nemchinov, Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine believes that the coronavirus crisis has put a halt to state governmental system reform. However, while the crisis has presented challenges, it has also offered opportunities. The extent to which the state government sector takes these opportunities to increase its self-confidence as an attractive employer depends on the willingness of government institutions to change from the inside, implement modern technologies, invest in employee training, and modernise effectively.

Interviewed by Dmytro Romanovych, Associate Director, Consulting, Government Projects and International Development Projects, KPMG in Ukraine.

This year Ukraine celebrates the 30th anniversary of the country’s independence. In your opinion, what significant steps has Ukraine taken during this time?

For me, this has been a 30-year process of restoring independence, forming a state territory, adopting a state Constitution and recognising the nature of Ukraine as an independent state in general. At the same time, it is impossible to imagine the history of Ukraine in isolation from its struggles for liberation in the twentieth century. Despite the fact that Ukraine is the successor to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, the country has also largely preserved the heritage of those prior states that were proclaimed by our ancestors in the twentieth century. If we look back at the history of the twentieth century, we should recall that the Baltic states existed a mere 19 years before Soviet occupation in 1940. That is why 30 years of Ukraine's independence is a very serious matter. That is why preserving that independence and the institutionalisation of the Ukrainian state are the most important things for the future of this country.