The UEPA National Award is the Ukrainian national stage for selecting candidates to participate in the European Enterprise Promotion Awards (EEPA). The UEPA is designed to honor those who contribute to the development of small and medium-sized enterprises at the national, regional, and local levels.
"The Ukrainian Enterprise Promotion Awards (UEPA) are an excellent initiative for stimulating entrepreneurship in Ukraine, focusing on successful practices of small and medium-sized enterprises, governments, municipalities, NGOs, and others, from which others can learn and implement in their own specific contexts. Out of 120 applications, 6 were selected as winners by an independent jury of entrepreneurs, academics, business associations, and others, using a transparent international methodology. Congratulations to the winners. I hope and expect that your outstanding initiatives will continue to positively impact employment, innovation, export, and more, at a time when Ukraine truly needs it," commented Ricardo Pinto, an international expert on the development and strategies of small and medium-sized enterprises.
According to the jury's voting results, winners were determined in 6 categories:
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Category "Promoting Entrepreneurial Spirit" – Project "New Economy of Ivano-Frankivsk". This project supports new clusters of innovative economic activities, including assistance in securing grant funding, seminars, and working groups on innovation management, networking, educational events, roundtables, guest visits to businesses/makers/scientists, etc.
Implementer: Consortium of partners including the Executive Committee of the Ivano-Frankivsk City Council, the Promprylad Innovation Center, the METALAB Urban Laboratory, the PPV Economic Development Agency, and the Warm City Platform.
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Category "Investing in Entrepreneurial Skills" – Project "Boot Camp". The goal of Boot Camp is to provide young students with practical experience in implementing social projects through IT technologies and to introduce them to leading IT companies in Kharkiv, showing opportunities for their development in the technical field.
Implementer: Kharkiv IT Cluster Public Association.
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Category "Supporting Digital Technologies" – Project "Climate Innovation Vouchers". This project supports the development of "green" initiatives, providing grants and improving innovation.
Implementer: Ukrainian Energy Innovations Network NGO "Green Hub".
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Category "Improving the Business Environment and Supporting Business Internationalization" – Project "Development of International Entrepreneurship". This program aims to improve the business climate in the city, cooperation between government and business, support small and medium-sized enterprises, and develop entrepreneurial initiatives among youth.
Implementer: Executive Committee of the Pavlohrad City Council.
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Category "Supporting Sustainable Transformation" – Project "Innovate4Ukraine: Climate & Energy Action". This project supports innovative ideas for climate and energy preservation.
Implementer: Global Compact Network in Ukraine NGO.
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Category "Responsible and Inclusive Entrepreneurship" – Project "Impact Business Accelerator". This initiative focuses on improving competitiveness and business adaptability to change.
Implementer: Impact Force NGO.
"Developing small and medium-sized enterprises is one of the Ministry of Economy’s priorities. This sector's contribution is crucial for the country's economic stability. In particular, SMEs produce about 80% of the total added value. Among Ukrainian SMEs, we can identify those who not only develop their own business but also make efforts to advance entrepreneurship as a whole. These companies have received the Ukrainian Enterprise Promotion Awards (UEPA) and will represent Ukrainian entrepreneurs at the European stage of the competition," said Oleksii Sobolev, First Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine.
In addition, the expert jury has determined the winners of the Ukrainian Enterprise Promotion Awards (UEPA). They will receive recognition and represent Ukraine at the European Enterprise Promotion Awards (EEPA) in November 2024 in Hungary.
Ukraine will be represented at the European stage of the competition by:
- Project "Climate Innovation Vouchers". Implementer: Ukrainian Energy Innovations Network NGO "Green Hub".
- Project "New Economy of Ivano-Frankivsk – Support for New Clusters of Innovative Economic Activities (NEF)". Implementer: Consortium of partners including the Executive Committee of the Ivano-Frankivsk City Council, Promprylad Innovation Center, METALAB Urban Laboratory, PPV Economic Development Agency, and Warm City Platform.
"This year's participants in the UEPA 2024 national award have demonstrated a great diversity of initiatives aimed at developing Ukrainian entrepreneurship. Ukrainian organizations are actively creating and developing projects with a focus on various aspects of business management and societal needs. The projects of UEPA 2024 participants also show that Ukrainian business is not only ready for change but also capable of generating new ideas that contribute to the sustainable development of the country’s economy. This is a positive indicator that the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Ukraine will continue to strengthen and expand," noted Andrii Remizov, Director of the Office for Entrepreneurship and Export Development.
A total of 119 applicants submitted entries for the competition, including socially responsible businesses, and state and private organizations responsible for the development of entrepreneurship in Ukraine.
