Ukraine
Overview
One of Europe’s IT outsourcing powerhouses, Ukraine has been significantly disrupted by three years of conflict with Russia. The west of the country is the least impacted and many tech companies have adapted by moving staff to safe areas inside the country or across the border.
The invasion saw the country’s economy decline by a third in 2022 before returning to growth the following year. As a direct consequence of the war, Ukraine is rated one of the least safe places in the world: ranked 159th of 163 countries by the 2024 Global Peace Index. In the previous year, Ukraine accounted for half of the 162,000 global deaths due to conflict, the second-highest toll in three decades.
The population responded to the invasion by rallying behind President Volodymyr Zelensky, who enjoyed very strong support in the months after the attack. The country has since been placed into martial law and elections that were due in 2024 have been delayed. Although recent polls show reduced support for Zelensky, he still has the backing of two-thirds of voters.
The Accelerance Global Network is the most curated list of high-quality global teams ever assembled.
8500
Developers
Total number of developers in our certified partner network by country
4
Certified Partners
Total number of certified partners in our global network by country.
14hrs
Time Travel (From NY)
Average flight time from NY to the major cities in the country.
58
Partner Innovation capability
The score reflects investment in STEM progrms and IT funding by country.
94
Partner Skill Level
Level of workforce skills and quality of education, including factors such as digital literacy, interpersonal skills, etc.
83
Partner Global Competitiveness
National productivity based on 12 core pillars, including government policy, infrastructure, economic stability, etc.
High
Software Outsourcing Readiness
Overall rating, based on the maturity of the tech sector, socio-political conditions, and on-the-ground research by Accelerance.
Talent Pool & Education
Despite the invasion, Ukraine remains a tech-savvy nation. A desire to move the economy away from Soviet-era heavy industries led to incentives such as tax breaks and government investment in tech via the National Academy of Sciences, which has supported more than 100 scientific research institutes and eight technoparks. The result was a tripling in technology exports between 2017 and 2021, according to the IT Association of Ukraine.
Most companies based in the west of the country remain operational, working with remote teams in secure locations. Initially, tech exports actually grew – by 6% in 2022, a time when the overall economy shrank by nearly a third. Iryna Volnytska, founder of SET, a tech-focused university in Kyiv, noted some new business seemed motivated by support for a country under invasion. That has since tailed off and tech exports have fallen below 2021 levels. Research by the Lviv IT Cluster, a tech incubator, found that 65,000 Ukrainian IT professionals are now living outside the country, with clusters in Warsaw, Berlin and other European cities.
Language
Ukrainian is the official language, although Russian is more widely spoken in Eastern Ukraine. The English skills of Ukrainian engineers are adequate, but not as strong as in other outsourcing destinations.
Economic Outlook
Ukraine’s economy rebounded after a sharp fall in 2022 following the invasion. Helped by a bumper wheat crop, increased defense spending and financial support from the international community, GDP grew 5.3% in 2023. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development forecasts the economy to expand by 3% in 2024, in line with the average rate across the region (central and eastern Europe, Central Asia and the southern and eastern Mediterranean).
The opening of a new Ukrainian Black Sea export corridor is boosting the metal industry and mining as well as the large agriculture sector. However, the prospect of a long war of attrition comes with risks to key infrastructure, particularly electricity and export routes, uncertainty about future foreign financing and investment and reduced domestic demand and labor. The former US special envoy for Ukraine’s economic recovery, Penny Pritzker, has said the country must do more to combat corruption to reassure potential foreign investors and achieve its goal of joining the European Union.
Political Conditions
A political novice when elected as president in a landslide victory in 2019, former actor and comedian Volodymyr Zelensky became the face of Ukrainian resistance, galvanizing support from the international community for the most severe sanctions regime against Russia in history. He continues to travel in an effort to maintain support and keep the invasion high in the news agenda at a time when world focus has shifted to the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Zelensky’s support reached a high of 90% after the invasion began in 2022, according to opinion polls, and 65% still trust him to lead two years later. Elections due in 2024 cannot be held after martial law was declared, due to concerns over security and displaced voters. A poll in late 2023 showed the majority did not want an election to be held until after the end of the war.
There have reportedly been several plots to assassinate Zelensky during his presidency. In mid-2024, he dismissed the head of the agency responsible for his protection after two of its officers were detained over an alleged assassination plot.