Past Event

Marking the 25th anniversary of Ukraine as a sovereign nation, this research seminar traces Ukrainian economic transformation since 1991. Post-communist transition has been a highlight of recent history, and Ukraine stands out as one of its most interesting and puzzling cases. Professor Havrylyshyn offers in his research the first comprehensive treatise on the entire period, providing a thorough description of the slow evolution of economic reforms, exploring how and why performance in this regard fell far behind the leaders in transition. Testing several conventional hypotheses, Havrylyshyn argues that while Russian imperialism may form part of the explanation, the self-serving interests of domestic elites and new oligarchs may be even more important.

About the speaker: Oleh Havrylyshyn is an economist with a diverse career including   academia, Government (Deputy Minister of Finance of Ukraine), and a senior position at the Board of Directors and Management of the IMF. His numerous writings on transition have been widely cited. In 2014-2016 he was an advisor to senior officials of the Ukrainian Government.   He has written many books and articles on the post-communsit transition. His current book project, PRESENT AT THE TRANSITION (to be published by Cambridge University .Press), takes an inside look at the process of decision-making on reforms in the early nineties.