Through Economic Resilience Activity (ERA), USAID delivered 10 diesel generators (from 80 to 544 kW), to 6 Ukrainian agrarian exporters to enable them to remain operational during power outages.  

ERA purchased three powerful generators for Nibulon at its branches in Odesa, Poltava and Cherkasy Oblasts. Nibulon’s branches do not have backup power systems, creating additional risks during the energy crisis caused by Russia’s shelling. Cherkasy and Poltava elevators have simultaneous grain storage capacities of 75,600 and 76,000 metric tons, respectively. The Odesa branch is designed to handle grain transshipped via sea and has a monthly capacity of 300,000 metric tons. These new generators with a 420 kW capacity each, will ensure full operations in the event of a power outage and continued logistics processes for grain storage and shipment. These three generators will increase Nibulon’s capacity by an estimated 52,000 tons per year in total. Earlier, USAID ERA provided Nibulon with 50 grain hopper wagons, grain testing equipment and samplers, two truck scales, two train scales, and three mobile grain loaders with two feed hoppers. Combined, this equipment enables Nibulon to reduce the cost of exporting grain, despite the loss of some assets due to Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.

Moreover, ERA delivered an 80 kW and a 420 kW generators to AR Boryspil in Kyiv Oblast. AR Boryspil is a grain and oilseed producer, and it owns 42,000 hectares of land and two modern elevator complexes in Kyiv and Zhytomyr Oblasts, which ensures the uninterrupted drying, storage, and shipment of high-quality grain. AR Boryspil estimates that with these two generators its export capacity will increase by 15,000 tons annually. Earlier, USAID ERA provided AR Boryspil with 25 grain wagons and two truck scales to boost company’s grain transportation capacity.  

Since February 2022, USAID ERA has delivered 37 generators to 17 AGRI companies to ensure exports of Ukrainian grain despite challenges caused by Russia’s war.   

USAID ERA is one of the key partners of USAID, which implements the Agricultural Sustainability Initiative of Ukraine (“AGRI-Ukraine”), budgeted at $350 million. This initiative was launched in 2022 with the aim of strengthening Ukrainian agricultural exports and mitigating the global food security crisis exacerbated by the war. As part of the “AGRI-Ukraine” initiative, USAID ERA cooperates with state and private enterprises to supplement and attract investments in transportation and transshipment of grain, which Ukraine desperately needs.  

More about the initiative at the link. 

On May 2, 2024, USAID Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman; U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink; Assistant Administrator in USAID’s Bureau for Europe and Eurasia Erin Elizabeth McKee; and USAID/Ukraine Mission Director James Hope joined Deputy-Prime Minister of Restoration Oleksandr Kubrakov and representatives of the Ukrainian Sea Port Authority (USPA), Ukrainian Shipbuilding Manufacturing (UMS), and USAID’s Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) to test a new pilot boat on the Dnipro River in Kyiv. The pilot boat is the first of three boats to be provided to USPA through USAID ERA.

This first completed pilot boat can hold 12 passengers plus two crew members and was built by UMS, a Ukrainian company with more than 20 years of boat manufacturing experience. The boat will support seafaring operations on the Danube River by transporting maritime pilots between land and inbound/outbound ships, ultimately reducing delays and increasing the throughput capacity of moving cargo by up to one million tons per year.

The U.S. government is committed to helping Ukraine increase grain exports during the war and strengthen global food security.

Background: Assistance to agricultural producers and infrastructure companies is part of the Agriculture Resilience Initiative (AGRI) – Ukraine, implemented by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). It aims to help Ukraine increase its capacity to produce, store, transport, and export grain.

On April 10, the Odesa Oblast Phytosanitary Laboratory opened a second remote branch on the Danube with three employees. USAID’s Economic Resilience Activity (USAID ERA) equipped the new laboratory with necessary equipment including, microscopes, laboratory scales, a bactericidal irradiator, a water treatment system, a set of weights, a laboratory hood, refrigerator, and consumables for conducting daily phytosanitary examinations such as Petri dishes, scissors, test tubes, gowns, and tips. 

This new laboratory will expedite the phytosanitary examination process of grain, ensure uninterrupted work of agricultural enterprises, and improve logistics for exporting Ukrainian grain on the Danube. 

“After Russia’s withdrawal from the “grain agreement”, security issues constrained grain shipment from the ports of Odesa. Companies pivoted and grain was shipped from the Southern ports (Izmail and Reni) instead, so opening an additional remote workplace was necessary. Every day, our main laboratory receives 20-150 samples for phytosanitary examination. The facility is only meant to handle 20 daily examinations, mainly samples of grain for export (corn, wheat, sunflower, rapeseed, soybean). Opening an additional remote location will help us speed up the analysis, because sample deliveries from the Danube to Odesa take a long time, delaying the ships in the port”, says the Acting Director of Odesa Oblast Phytosanitary Laboratory Kateryna Abuselidze. 

USAID ERA is one of the key partners of USAID, which implements the Agricultural Sustainability Initiative of Ukraine (“AGRI-Ukraine”), budgeted at $350 million. This initiative was launched in 2022 with the aim of strengthening Ukrainian agricultural exports and mitigating the global food security crisis exacerbated by the war. As part of the “AGRI-Ukraine” initiative, USAID ERA cooperates with state and private enterprises to supplement and attract investments in transportation and transshipment of grain, which Ukraine desperately needs. 

More about the initiative at the link.

“Like-minded People Inspire Me” 

Olha Vakarchuk is the Financial Director of a group of agricultural companies in the central part of Ukraine. Mrs. Vakarchuk is proud of her decision, nearly 20 years ago, to build her career in the agricultural field. She is a financier and economist by trade, schooled at the Vadym Hetman National University of Economics, and rose from Financial Controller to Director, serving at various companies. 

Shortly before the start of Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine, she received an offer to move from her Kyiv office to work in a village in Cherkasy Oblast. She made the brave decision and relocated to a small cozy village. 

“Managing a company from the office is one thing, but being in a village where you see farmers sowing wheat, grinding flour, or constructing an elevator outside your window is a whole new experience. My worldview has expanded”, shares Mrs. Vakarchuk, “Here, everything is in the palm of your hand, you feel and see everything deeply.” 

Ms. Vakarchuk explains how agriculture is not only about growing grains, but also about grain processing and logistics; it is a much broader field where many can attain professional fulfillment. In addition to financial reporting, Olha is responsible for communicating with Ukrainian and foreign partners, implementing new projects, and attracting assistance. 

“It doesn’t matter the gender of those around you. What is important is if they perform their work well, strive for development, and remain humane. When there are like-minded people with whom you look in the same direction, it is inspirational. This is precisely what motivates me to continue working in agriculture. Now, during the war, we are grateful to our partners for their support. Last year, our company received a grain transportation trailer and two generators from USAID Economic Resilience Activity. This affords us stability and enables us to continue to grow grain during the war.” 

​“The Ability to Influence Strategic Decisions Keep Me Going”  

Olena Krysenko has been working at IMK agricultural holding since their inception. Olena grew from a Sales Manager to a Commercial Director within the last 17 years. Currently, she is responsible for developing and implementing sales and procurement strategies, negotiating with key customers, and analyzing market trends.  

Ms. Krysenko explains how during wartime the two main challenges for agricultural businesses are changes in the price and demand for grain, which affects the company’s profitability, and the difficult access to sales markets. These factors force business entities to look for new logistics solutions and export routes. It’s these clever innovations, responding to challenges, that motivate me. 

“What I love most about my job is the opportunity to influence the company’s strategic decisions” says Olena. “In this difficult time for all of us, I am inspired by innovation and the introduction of new technologies in the agricultural sector, and by the fact that I contribute to the development of agricultural production, as well as the potential for expanding sales markets and developing new commercial activities” she continued.