Today one of the burning subjects is support of socially active population represented by the small and medium-sized business. The head of the NGO “The All-Ukrainian organization on the IDPs’ affairs” Aleksandr Melanchenko said what migrants-businessmen and the authorities of Ukraine should do today.
In one of your interviews you said that migrants-businessmen had moved out of Donbass with the first wave of evacuation. According to your calculations, are there many representatives of the small and medium-sized business who haven’t moved out yet and how many of them have already migrated?
Yes, I said that mostly middle class and beneficiaries were migrating during the first wave of evacuation, because people with income above the average got in the crosshair of the so-called “LNR” and “DNR”. Actually, many people expected they would leave for no longer than half a year to ride out trouble times.
However, it is complicated to estimate amount of migrants-businessmen now. As before, trips of active people to Donbass and backwards continue. Many of them returned home where they had stocks of products left to sell them. Unfortunately, it is too complicated and disadvantageous to bring products from the ATO zone now. It is easier to sell it for prices available for the population in Donbass.
The hardest situation is for the small and middle-sized business that started to cooperate with the non-recognized republics. In fact, they are almost cut off from distribution centers. They have to live with new logistic, currency rates and persistent want for money of the local population of the non-recognized republics. It very hard to estimate business dealing in such conditions. In addition, there is a special nature of the new authorities, when retainers are allowed to do whatever they want and for all the rest there is a law.
Why do you highlight cooperation and support of representatives of the small and medium business today?
In general, we deal with all the displaced persons, but we pay a special attention to the migrants of the first wave of evacuation because these people are ready for changes the most. All the next waves in general were morally and materially impoverished people with paternalistic tendencies in the social sphere of life. Such people aren’t inclined to the activities but rather consider that the state owes them. However, both you and I understand that it is exactly around an active person other people can live.
The closest example for us is refuges from Armenia and Azerbaidzhan after well-known events of the Karabakh conflict. Leaders give their countrymen a chance to survive. We thought that the active representatives of exactly the small and medium-sized business would become such leaders in Ukraine, around which life of displaced persons would seethe.
Is there any mechanism of transfer or reregistration of business from the ATO zone today? Should anything be changed here?
There are no problems with mere reregistration of a business. Complications appear with the physical transfer of an own occupation, because in this case new material and human resources are required. The psychological willingness of a migrant-businessman to start from nothing in a new place, where there is already some competition, is also very important. Positions of local entrepreneurs are too strong to compete with them.
What are the top-priority directions for the small and medium-sized business now and why?
The top-priority for the migrant-businessman should be that kind of business, on which there is a state-order, because for a migrant it would be hard to survive without distribution guarantees. For today, for example, enterprises of the food service industry with a “Donetsk raisin” are interesting. The trade business also has the potential, as it is the easiest one to start.
Is it important to support business in the very Donbass? (in the territories controlled by Ukraine)
No. As long as there is no stability, no one is going to support business on the territories controlled by Ukraine. The local small and medium business works “neither good nor bad”, on the principle “living for one day”.
If stability remains, then it will be necessary to focus all the efforts in the ATO zone in order to restore entrepreneurial business.
What kind of problems do migrant-businessmen from Crimea and Donbass face today?
Only psychological ones. Many of them are simply not ready to establish a new life from nothing. Of course, no one would refuse from some fringe benefits, however, we understand perfectly well that in case of receiving them, all active people will move out the zone of the pseudo-republics and inhabitants of central and western Ukraine will establish enterprises around them. A balanced approach is needed to solve this task in order not to create any contradictions between the arrived and local business.
Are there any grant-aiding business programs in the EU Refugee Agency? Do you consider there should be more of such programs or it is better to emphasize aid of the state?
According to the unspoken statistics, creation of one work position costs around 50 000 UAH. Any grants that can be provided by different organizations will be used for decumulation rather than creation. From the West, instead of grants, we would rather like to get establishing of enterprises that would attract migrants-businessmen as suppliers. Or, as an option, it could access granting to the new technologies for starting some businesses by the displaced persons.
What kinds of tools are needed to support the small and medium-sized business of the IDPs today?
Today it is simply impossible to move on without establishing of a united state agency that would systematically deal with issues of internally displaced persons, lead negotiations with western donors and so one. As you understand, nowadays every ministry “volunteers” working with migrants, in other words, it helps them at will and occasionally. I believe it was completely wrong to impart taking care about IDPs to the Ministry of Social Policy that isn’t ready to resolve issues of housing and job creation. There is no understanding of the situation and programs of assistance for the IDPs appear in the form they already exist. To be honest, it would be better for them not to write those programs in order not to make themselves, the whole world and even the “DNR” together with “LNR” laugh.
