On January, 17 during World Economic Forum it was presented the Impact Business, an in-depth acceleration program for the active businesses registered in Ukraine that will contribute to the post-war recovery of Ukraine. LCF Law Group became a legal partner of this project.
The pilot program will support 25 Ukrainian businesses working in agriculture, energy, infrastructure, healthcare, cybersecurity and other industries that aspire to incorporate social impact as part of their strategy. The larger goal of the pilot is to build a strong ecosystem encouraging more businesses driven by a social mission to reinvest profits into creating positive social change as well as fostering a social impact economy in post-war Ukraine.
By joining the Impact Business acceleration program, applicants will get access to live lectures, workshops and studies focused on incorporating social impact into their strategy as well as general business growth topics and advisory support from world known experts, coaches and mentors, as well as access to investors and global tech resources.
According to the results of the program, two enterprises with the best results will have the opportunity to get/encourage financial support of up to 20,000 euros per team.
Financial support will be provided in the form of smart grants from the Ukrainian Social Venture Fund and within the “Collaborate for Impact” project, which is funded by the European Union and implementing in partnership with EVPA.
Impact Business Accelerator Program, initiated by Impact Force NGO, is powered by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Entrepreneurship and Export Promotion Office and national project Diia.Business, supported by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the WEF Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship, academics and alumni from the University of Cambridge, in partnership with SiLab Ukraine, MovingWorlds.org (backed by SAP, Unilever, and EY, among others), Netguru, Tech To The Rescue, Phineo and LCF Law Group, leading Ukrainian Social Society organizations.
“We support the development of Ukrainian entrepreneurship, which is extremely important for recovering Ukraine’s economy. The 25 companies participating in the first wave of the accelerator will receive knowledge and help to improve their professional activities and bring a social component to their work. Social business is the most promising entrepreneurship model, proving its effectiveness over time.” — Anna Ogrenchuk, a managing partner of LCF Law Group, the president of the Ukrainian Bar Association.
“We strive to nurture changemakers and build an ecosystem that is passionate about a brighter future for Ukraine. By launching Impact Business we want to empower a new breed of entrepreneurs in Ukraine, foster social entrepreneurship and help social innovators navigate the challenges and make their impact louder and more visible” — Nina Levchuk, co-founder at Impact Force NGO.
“Full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has changed our vision of the role of business in society. It is already clear that the business cannot work according to the old rules: I sell a product and make a profit. Ukraine needs recovery, and therefore business must become responsible and not only generate profit, but also bring qualitative changes. Social influence should be one of the key indicators of the development of every business. The recovery of Ukraine in various fields will require quick innovative solutions with a large social impact. That is why an important component of the acceleration program will be a focus on social impact, technologies for its formation and measurement.” — Alena Kalibaba Co-founder SILab Ukraine & СЕО Ukrainian Social Venture Fund (USVF).
“Support of business development in Ukraine is one of the priorities for the Ministry of Digital Transformation. A full-scale russian invasion to Ukraine greatly affected the usual course of development of businesses, and therefore it has major impact on the economy of the entire country. In the Ministry, we implement many initiatives to support entrepreneurs, provide them with resources, knowledge, inspiration and opportunities to start and scale their own business, despite all the circumstances. We believe that the Impact Business acceleration program will strengthen the position of entrepreneurs in the market in these times of unprecedented challenges and will be a part of a positive impact on the post-war economy.” — Valeriya Ionan, Deputy Minister for Eurointegration at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
“The research is clear: When social businesses thrive, communities thrive. When communities thrive, nations can thrive. We are honored to be supporting these future heroes of recovery efforts that are choosing the arduous – yet rewarding – journey of building businesses that support economic recovery while equally prioritizing social good and environmental sustainability.” — Mark Horoszowski, Co-founder & CEO, MovingWorlds.org
“Bringing Impact Force together with powerful tech and government partners is a clear sign that collaborations are critical – both for recovery efforts in Ukraine and for future responses to global crises. As Tech To The Rescue, we are proud to have supported the Impact Force project along with 115 other initiatives to leverage technology for humanitarian response. With nearly 700 tech companies still willing to engage in pro bono projects for Ukraine, we continue our mission to forge even more impactful collaborations.” — Daniel DiGiusto, Co-founder of Tech To The Rescue.
“Fostering entrepreneurship will have a vital role in re-building Ukraine’s economy and its position in the region. Thanks to a proper combination of technology and experience, Impact Business will provide key know-how and advisory, allowing local entrepreneurs to focus on what really matters. As the technology partner of the program, I’m glad that our people were able to support Ukraine with their skills and knowledge.” — Marek Talarczyk, CEO at Netguru.
