Družba Slovakia – Ukraine is a non-profit organization that was established in 2013 as a response to a growing demand for the support of business cooperation and partnership between Slovakia and Ukraine. The initiative to create this organization comes directly from companies, employers and their legal representatives on both sides of the border. NPO Družba Slovakia – Ukraine is supported by the city of Košice, the Košice Region and is politically maintained by Ukraine. The project is also supported by the Consulate General of Ukraine in Preshov and the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Kyiv.

Ukraine is considered to be our important economic partner (energy transit, supply of raw materials). Even though Ukraine is the biggest neighboring country of Slovakia, their volume of trade is 4 times smaller than the one with other neighbors (Hungary, Poland, Austria) and 10 times smaller than the one with the Czech Republic. Natural resources, cultural affinity and geographical position represent a great potential for cooperation between Slovakia and Ukraine.

Slovakia can become a bridge between Ukraine and the EU. The project is focused on the creation of cross-border trade and economic cooperation between the Slovak Republic and Ukraine. The project’s elements in the cross-border region are conducive to doing business and are designed to provide informational, legal and technical support for cross-border business and trading cooperation. A range of supplementary instruments are to be created in order to provide support within the framework of the project: Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Slovak – Ukrainian business incubator, Arbitration Court, Ukrainian – Slovak Business Portal and Slovak – Ukrainian “House of Friendship”.

Through these instruments NPO Družba Slovakia – Ukraine coordinates, initiates and supports a closer cooperation between institutions, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and commercial companies. The strategy of stimulation of cross-border business and entrepreneurship is based on services that eliminate the complexity of market entry outside the EU. For Slovak businessmen Ukraine is a geographically beneficial market whose potential demand dramatically exceeds the possibilities of the domestic market. Slovakia in turn can bridge the gap between Ukraine and the EU.

Main Goals:

• Social and economic development of the cross-border region
• Creation of new business cooperation between the subjects of the cross-border region
• Support of the existing trading cooperation between the subjects of the cross-border region
• Enhancement of mutual understanding on both sides of the border
• Improvement of cooperation between educational establishments, employers and other subjects
• Elimination of obstacles for cross-border business and trading cooperation
• Development of new ways to create individual cross-border contacts and connections/channels
• Collection of data on opportunities of potential cooperation