Monitoring the Implementation of the IMF Program and EU Assistance №18

Following the July scandal involving the anti-corruption institutions, the Ukrainian authorities significantly changed their position and resumed fulfilling their commitments. President Zelenskyy has stressed that combating corruption and progress towards EU membership must remain priorities. The government has also finally appointed a head of the Economic Security Bureau. These steps sent an important signal to European partners and helped keep Ukraine and Moldova on a shared path towards EU membership.

Discussions on a new cooperation programme with the IMF are under way, but no official details are available yet. The main problem is that the current agreement was based on expectations of a rapid end to the war and the start of reconstruction, but these expectations have not materialised. Ukraine’s unmet commitments are expected to be carried over into the new programme, and the IMF may be more demanding of the Ukrainian authorities.

The government has updated Ukraine’s Plan for the Ukraine Facility and agreed on the changes with the European Commission. Some reforms have been brought forward, including the sale of state-owned banks and changes in the energy sector. The Council of the EU is expected to approve the updated Plan by the end of September, in which case Ukraine will report against the new schedule starting from the third quarter of 2025. This presentation uses the Plan as it stood in August, which does not yet reflect these changes.