In an interview with journalists in Ternopil, Victor Yushchenko said Ukraine’s economy could develop "at a record pace." He reminded them that this year the GDP rate had grown by 1.5%, the press service of the president informed.
“I think this will help us have Ukraine's greatest economic growth in 2006,” he said.
Mr. Yushchenko opined that a developing economy was a necessary condition to create new jobs and reiterated that the government had created 1. 149 mln jobs in 2005.
“This year we will have to overcome the same bar,” he said.
The Chief of State assuredthe nationthat the economy and inflation would be stable after elections.
“There are no reasons for currency and price instability,” he said. “Inflation occurs when there is a budget deficit. Then we print more money but there are no new goods and it makes prices grow,” he explained, reminding his interviewers that this year’s budget deficit is only 1.2%. “This deficit is excellent for our transition economy.”
Then the President said his team “knows how to ensureeconomic growth.”
Victor Yushchenko said he was convinced this year's program on road development would be successfully carried out. He said in 2006 the government was going to spend UAH 6.4 bln on road development. This should help asphalt roads across the country. The government also plans to build six highways: Uzhgorod-Kyiv, Kyiv-Chernihiv, Kharkiv-Dnipropetrovsk, Dnipropetrovsk-Simferopol, Kyiv-Odessa, and Kyiv-Kharkiv.
“These highways will be European high quality roads,” he promised.
The President said the use of the funds to develop roads should be publicly monitored.
