NBU Governor Andriy Pyshnyy’s Column for NV summarizes the 9th NBU-NBP Annual Research Conference. To read the key messages conveyed during the event, follow the link.
Ukraine’s European Integration Is beyond Doubt
Important takeaways from the 9th NBU-NBP Annual Research Conference
Fresh from the event, here are a few personal observations that I think were the conference’s unifying themes:
1. Ukraine’s European Integration Is beyond Doubt.
Our partners understand and support the strategic benefits of Ukraine’s accession for both our country and the European community. The extent to which we are on the same page is confirmed by what European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said in her speech. Ukraine’s integration is no charity, it’s a practical choice. Ukraine can become a catalyst for qualitative change in the EU. This role is not a political figure of speech, but a position that European leaders have clearly articulated.
2. Reforms are a top priority.
Ms Lagarde put it very unequivocally: the benefits of integration are neither automatic nor permanent. Maintaining them depends on continuous reform. If Ukraine stays the course on institutional reform and continues to adapt its economy and financial system to new opportunities, it can emerge as a vital engine of growth. There is a clear link between strong institutions and economic resilience.
Of course, we are aware of the amount of work that needs to be done. Both new candidates for EU membership and current members face a long and winding path of reform. I agree with Bank of Lithuania Governor Gediminas Šimkus, who said that integration is a journey, not a destination.
3. We have a clearly laid-out roadmap ahead of us: full harmonization with EU standards.
This is not just a guideline, it’s a specific task. But it poses a difficult challenge.
It’s necessary to: (a) combine the pace of regulatory change with maintaining financial stability; and (b) respond to the fact that regulation in the EU is also constantly changing.
We are, in effect, catching up with a moving target. A smart-regulation approach is therefore necessary that would apply a sufficient minimum of regulation as needed and promote awareness in every decision.
Each nation has to adjust its European integration path to its country-specific context. In Ukraine’s case, the financial system is facing not only the task of implementing reforms, but also that of supporting the country’s reconstruction.
4. Central banks cannot prevent external shocks, which have recently become increasingly frequent. What matters is how we respond to them.
We can prevent inflationary effects from impacting our economy, and we can do so without undermining the sustainability of our system.
5. To strengthen competitiveness, it is necessary to develop financial markets.
They can become not just the main source of investment inflows, but also pillars of geopolitical resilience.
The past two days have been very busy. I am grateful to Narodowy Bank Polski for helping us organize this milestone event for the ninth straight year. With every year, the conference becomes more powerful and meaningful, particularly in terms of practical implications.
My gratitude goes out to the International Monetary Fund and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). Without your support, this event would not have taken place.
I am thankful to the speakers, especially those who were able to come to Kyiv in person despite another horrific attack having hit the capital city earlier this week.
I never tire of reiterating that we value our guests’ willingness to share the same air with us, even when it carries the scent of smoke. We appreciate their choice to stand beneath the same sky, even when missiles come falling out of it. This is about real help, including political support.
I am grateful to our defenders. It appears words cannot begin to describe the greatest of all contributions that our defenders have made to both the present and future of Ukraine and, in fact, the EU.
And, of course, I am thankful to the NBU team, who were the authors, the inspiration, and the driving force of this conference. You have outdone yourselves yet again!