Ukraine loses over 11 billion dollars a year due to mined territories — study.

Ukraine annually incurs losses of 11.2 billion dollars due to mines and other explosive objects, which constitutes 5.6% of the country's GDP in 2021. The largest losses are felt in the export of agricultural products and local tax revenues.

This information is contained in a study conducted by the Tony Blair Institute in conjunction with the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine.

According to the Tony Blair Institute, more than 20% of the regional GDP of the Chernihiv, Sumy, Mykolaiv, and Kharkiv regions suffered due to mined areas. In total, local authorities lose over 1.1 billion dollars in local taxes.

First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko, during a conversation with Howard Buffett, philanthropist and head of a charitable fund, emphasized that the government has launched a compensation program for farmers who plan to clear agricultural land on which they work, to accelerate the land clearance process.

"Currently, 10 auctions for the procurement of demining services for agricultural lands have been announced in the Prozorro system. The total area of lands planned for demining is over 3,700 hectares. We expect that within the next two weeks the auctions will be successfully completed and the first contracts with demining operators will be signed,"

According to the Tony Blair Institute report, it will take almost 35 billion dollars to fully de-mine the entire territory of Ukraine according to World Bank estimates. However, the report notes that Ukraine will be able to recoup this amount in less than three and a half years after the complete clearance of the land.