Ukraine, because of the current situation, a lot of people are paying attention to the country. In fact, many people do not know much about Ukraine, but when we look at the map of Europe, we can find that Ukraine is still very conspicuous. There are many European countries, so the area of countries is very small, but Ukraine still looks relatively large. Ukraine is the second largest country in Europe, second only to Russia and larger than France. In fact, Ukraine is not only large in size, but also very rich in resources. It can be said that there are many advantages. However, the country's per capita GDP is the lowest in Europe. Let's look at why this is the case.
Let's take a look at the general situation in Ukraine. Located in Eastern Europe and bordering the Black Sea to the south, Ukraine is a country with access to the sea. Among the European countries, Ukraine is definitely a large country in terms of land area and population, and it is rich in resources. However, the country's per capita GDP is only $3378, which is arguably out of place in Europe. After all, countries with a per capita GDP of more than 10,000 are common. Ukraine's GDP per capita is the first in Europe. Let's first look at Ukraine's specific strengths and why its GDP per capita is so low.
First, let's look at the land aspect. With an area of 603,700 square kilometers, Ukraine is the second largest in Europe and second only to Russia. We need not say much about Russia, which is the largest country in the world by area and spans two continents. In addition to Russia, Ukraine is also the largest territorial power in Europe. Germany, which we are familiar with, has an area of only 350,000 square kilometers. Britain is only 240,000 square kilometers in size, not even half of Ukraine. It can be said that the advantages of Ukraine's territory in Europe are still obvious. Moreover, Ukraine is generally dominated by a temperate continental climate, which is still relatively suitable for human habitation.
Second, look at Ukraine's resources. The resources here are mainly natural resources, and ukraine is really rich in resources at this point. As mentioned earlier, Ukraine has a large land area, ukraine is not only a large country, but also a fertile land, more than two-thirds of which is black land. It should be known that the black soil is the most fertile land, which is very suitable for agricultural development; in terms of mineral resources, the current proven reserves of iron ore in Ukraine are 27.5 billion tons, the reserves of manganese ore are more than 2.1 billion tons, and the proven reserves of coal are 109 billion tons, which are the forefront of the world. In addition to these mineral resources, Ukraine is also very rich in nickel, titanium, mercury, graphite, refractory soil, stone and other resources. It should be known that mineral resources are necessary for the development of industry and are essential for industrial development.
Third, look at Ukrainian industry. Although Ukraine is a developing country, it is really not an exaggeration to say that Ukraine is industrially developed. Ukraine was previously one of the member states of the Soviet Union, and it should be noted that the heavy industry of the Soviet Union was very developed. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the industries in its territory were disposed of locally. These things belong to which country they belong, and in this way, Ukraine has a large number of industrial equipment and a large number of people. Therefore, Ukraine's military industry, metallurgy, machinery manufacturing industry are relatively developed.
Fourth, look at Ukraine's demographic advantages. Ukraine still has a relatively large population. At present, the population of Ukraine is 41.58 million, which is not high in the global ranking, but it is also among the best in Europe, and there are few european countries that have more people than Ukraine. And after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine's population peaked at more than 52 million, more than 10 million more than now. It should be known that a large population means that the labor resources are abundant, which has a great role in promoting economic development.
These are ukraine's advantages. In general, Ukraine's advantages are still relatively obvious among European countries. The land area is large and suitable for agricultural development. Rich in mineral resources, developed heavy industry and rich in human resources. National development requires a lot of important things, almost all of which Ukraine has. So why, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine's per capita GDP is now the first in Europe?
First of all, it has to do with the reforms in Ukraine. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine not only transformed its social system, but also carried out reforms in many aspects such as politics and economy. In particular, in view of the irrational economic structure, emphasis has been placed on reform. After all, heavy industry was extremely developed during the Soviet period, and its industry and agriculture were relatively backward, and such an economic structure was not conducive to national development. So Ukraine is reforming this aspect. Simply put, Ukraine is about reducing its investment in heavy industry and increasing its investment in agriculture and light industry. The direction is indeed correct, but there are many problems in the implementation process, so it has not achieved the desired effect. The end result of this is that Ukraine's heavy industry stagnates and its advantages gradually disappear. Light industry and agriculture have not developed, so the overall competitiveness of the economy is far less than before.
Although Ukraine had so many advantages at this time, the economic structural problems were not only not handled well, but intensified, so the economic growth was very slow.
Secondly, it has to do with the geographical location of Ukraine. The development of any country or region is affected by geographical location, which is unavoidable. Ukraine, although located in Europe, is located in Eastern Europe. It should be known that Eastern Europe is relatively backward economically relative to Western Europe and Northern Europe for many reasons. The economies of these countries are far less developed than those of Western europe and northern Europe. Ukraine's neighbors Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, except for Slovakia and Hungary, which are relatively developed economies, are not very good. The economies of these countries also have a certain impact on Ukraine. If Ukraine is surrounded by economically developed countries, then Ukraine will also be promoted to a certain extent when it develops.
Moreover, the economic development of Europe has not been very good in recent years, and the economic growth of Ukraine's neighbors in recent years has not been obvious. This also has certain restrictions on ukraine's economic development.
The third is directly related to the government. This is very important in Ukraine. Simply put, corruption is rife in the Ukrainian government, and collusion between officials and businessmen is emerging. During ukraine's reforms, many became oligarchs through collusion with officials who monopolized ukraine's economy. Coupled with the fact that the government has formulated many problematic policies, it is even more detrimental to its economic development.
It is for these reasons that Ukraine's economic development after the collapse of the Soviet Union is not good. Of course, Ukraine's per capita GDP is not without any growth, and its per capita GDP is three times higher than when it first became independent. But the 30 years are only three times the time before, and this growth rate is very slow. However, because the country has a good foundation, it is not impossible for the economy to rise later.