Ukraine has tried to reassure financiers that the reconstruction of the country will go ahead and urged them to invest even before the war ends. But the country is still struggling to overcome its corrupt past.

Kyiv

Russian forces have invaded Ukraine from land, air and sea with strikes causing widespread damage. Global leaders have condemned the move and imposed sanctions.

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine reconstruction struggles amid corruption fears 

Russian forces withdrew from Borodyanka in April last year. Large sections of the town a half hour drive from Kiev lie in ruins. While fighting continues in the east and despite there being no end of the war in sight, reconstruction of towns like this one and the rebuilding of vital infrastructure far from the front lines is already underway. Most of the work so far is being paid for with Ukrainian cash reserves but what's being described as the largest rebuild in Europe since the Second World War could cost a trillion dollars. As the mammoth reconstruction process starts and the money starts flooding in, there are still serious concerns about corruption. In a report compiled by the UN along with the organisation Transparency International, they say that these long-entrenched problems include poor governance, the influence of oligarchs on parliament, low integrity in the private sector and a compromised judiciary. And this means that keeping this reconstruction process clean is a huge challenge. While Ukraine's international corruption rating has improved in recent years, it remains dismal. Only Russia was worse in the region, according to Transparency International's 2022 corruption index. We need to improve the transparency where our security risks are mitigated because of the Russian war. This is number one. Another, we need to continue doing the reforms, the judicial reform. We need to start the reform of the audit and the accounting chamber of Ukraine and of course in the long term we're looking into anti-monopoly committee changes in order to avoid any violation of the competition law. Experts say Ukraine has cleaned up its act in some sectors including banking and healthcare but pressure from civil society organisations and digital auditing of politicians and company assets must be ramped up. It needs time. It's a huge system. We need to recruit more than 2,000 judges. It's a huge challenge. This is one. Another one, let's strengthen the capacity of the anti-corruption institutions. They need more investigators, they need more prosecutors, they need more judges. Ukraine's foreign minister reassured potential investors at a conference on reconstruction held in Rome. You will hear how much we're doing to make our country economically viable and attractive for trade and investment. But the opportunities are here and now. You don't have to wait for the end of the war. Ukraine's progress to full EU membership from its candidacy status granted in June is dependent on reforms, many focused specifically on corruption. On the right track, say Western backers, but big questions remain on just how cleanly they're going to use the reconstruction money. Charles Stratford, Al Jazeera, Kyiv.

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Tehran

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Ukraine Invasion