The World Bank has estimated that the damages caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine will cost $349 billion to recover the losses. The EU and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs have already issued financial support to sectors. Specifically, the support would go to financing, humanitarian, emergency, and military.
After an evaluation of the war damages in Ukraine, the Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment has forecasted that over the next 36 months, rebuilding the infrastructure of the country will cost $105 billion. Amid the invasion, many tech organizations and startups have also extended a helping hand to restore Ukraine.
Infrastructure
ICE Industrial Services is a Czech company that delivers automated and 3D-printed concrete structures. The company’s ICE Coral service uses robotic 3D printers to print concrete and build structures based on the structure’s design. For Ukraine, ICE Industrial Sevices is using this service to rebuild the civic infrastructure quickly and efficiently. The company has already delivered concrete shelters to Ukraine. They are now looking at printing houses, schools, and hospitals.
Meanwhile, Team4humanity is a Ukrainian NGO working on a project called HIVE on 3D print shelters for Ukraine and abroad. The houses made by the NGO are eco-friendly with internal water recycling ability and energy efficient with solar panels. They aim to build communities in safe locations while retaining the Ukrainian culture.
Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity threats keep rising and measures are taken to prevent malicious cyber attacks as much as possible. As damaging events are unfolding quickly in Ukraine, the country’s digital infrastructure has also suffered some blows. The “startup ecosystem” of the country was thriving before the war and has recently been backed by tech giants to rebuild the ecosystem.
In 2020, a Polish startup called techtotherescue came up with the idea of connecting technological companies with NGOs to get through the tech challenges that came about during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, they are providing pro bono services to connect NGOs to IT firms. By doing so, they aim to fight cyberattacks which Ukraine has become vulnerable to.
On the digital news front, Brussels-based NGO EU DisinfoLab filters and flags social media posts that are propaganda-oriented or fake news to preserve the integrity of digital news in the EU. They created a resource page for Ukraine that provides information and links to essential information that would help people navigate the war. The page will be regularly updated.
https://twitter.com/EDMO_EUI/status/1593152965891719168?s=20&t=39XjiQu285fnvBxGxEPnrQ
Alternatives to energy production sources
Last November at the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference, Ukraine, and the US announced their pilot project called Ukraine Clean Fuels. The project aims to produce commercial-scale clean fuels from a small modular nuclear reactor in Ukraine. The project also aims to support the country’s energy security goals. The curtailment of fossil fuels made the energy crisis in Ukraine difficult for people to consume energy due to the ever-rising prices. With the curtailment, the entire European Union has to pay 10 times more than it used to for gas.
The country is looking for alternatives to fossil fuels to support its electric infrastructure. A Ukrainian NGO called Greencubator was founded in 2009 and has been a regular participant in hackathons where people collaborate on engineering projects completed in 24-48 hours. The NGO is a platform that connects entrepreneurs and startups that are working on generating renewable energy.
Photo credit: The feature image is symbolic and has been done by Yurii Andreichyn.
Source: Euro News / US Department of State / The World Bank / European Parliament
