Baltic Journal of Economic Studies  

164

Vol. 9 No. 5, 2023

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms 
of the Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 4.0

1 Classic Private University, Ukraine (corresponding author)
E-mail: Pokataeva.Olga1978@gmail.com
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3897-6845
2 Dnipro State Agrarian and Economic University, Ukraine
E-mail: halynapavlova@ukr.net
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1400-7348
3 Dnipro State Agrarian and Economic University, Ukraine
E-mail: atamas070174@gmail.com
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7511-8586

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30525/2256-0742/2023-9-5-164-168

INVESTMENT ATTRACTIVENESS OF UKRAINE'S ECONOMY 
AS A DOMINANT FACTOR IN ATTRACTING INTERNATIONAL 

CAPITAL: ANALYSIS, PROSPECTS, PRIORITIES
Olha Mashchenko1, Halina Pavlova2, Oleksandr Аtamas3

Abstract. The article analyses and proves the expediency of assessing the investment attractiveness of the 
Ukrainian economy on the basis of international ratings. The main task of the scientific publication is the  
analysis of the current state of investment attractiveness of the national economy and the determination of  
priority directions of its further strategic development. The concretisation of methodological approaches to 
the assessment of the level of investment attractiveness of the national economy through the prism of rating 
assessments of various agencies becomes a prerequisite for the formation of modern methods, principles,  
forms and priority tools of state regulation of this process. The use of innovative methods and methods of  
conducting scientific research in the context of determining the level of investment attractiveness of the 
national economy is a fundamental element of the model of successful attraction of investment capital and  
implementation of long-term strategic investment decisions. The subject of the scientific article is a rating of the 
investment attractiveness of the national economy from the perspective of the post-war period. The methodology 
of scientific research is based on the need to determine the level of economic efficiency of investment capital  
in modern conditions of globalisation transformations in the economy of Ukraine. The paper reveals the main  
issues of the methodology of investment decision analysis and the definition of criteria of efficiency of investment 
capital attraction to the national economy. The criteria of selection, justification and adoption of balanced 
management decisions are detailed and analysed. The purpose of this study is a comprehensive analysis of the  
state's position in international rating assessments of investment attractiveness, identification of key factors 
influencing the formation of a high level of investment attractiveness of the Ukrainian economy and search for 
ways to increase it by attracting additional investment capital. The conclusion of the publication is the search for 
ways to ensure a high level of investment attractiveness of Ukraine's economy as a dominant factor in attracting 
international investment capital. The fundamental strategic priority of the state investment policy is to form  
a comprehensive mechanism for ensuring a high level of investment attractiveness of the economy by developing  
a long-term programme for ensuring a high level of investment attractiveness of the national economy.

Key words: investment attractiveness, rating, capital, valuation, economy, analysis.

JEL Classification: G30

1. Introduction
Ukraine's course towards joining the European and 

global community of developed countries requires 
a detailed analysis of how to comprehensively ensure 
a high level of investment attractiveness of the  
national economy. The comprehensive solution of  
this problem will be possible through the creation  
of an effectively functioning system for managing 

the state of investment attractiveness of the economy  
under the current transformational changes.

The problem of researching the level of investment 
attractiveness of a state economy has been revealed 
in scientific works of both foreign and domestic 
scientists. In particular, in the studies of (Kuzhel,  
2010; Prokopchuk, Horbachova, Mamchenko, 2020; 
Nebrat, Korniiaka, 2022) and many others. However, 



Baltic Journal of Economic Studies  

165

Vol. 9 No. 5, 2023 
the diversity of interpretations of the economic  
category "investment attractiveness", the multidirec-
tionality of economic research of the category in 
the context of ensuring an increase in performance 
indicators, imperfections or inaccuracies in defining 
forms and methods of work with the designated 
economic category, have necessitated the provision 
of a comprehensive theoretical and methodological 
research of this issue, taking into account the  
practical component of ensuring a high level of 
investment attractiveness of the state economy.

Detailing the methodological approaches to 
assessing the investment attractiveness of the state's 
economy using the rating approach is a prerequisite 
for determining the priority areas of its strategic 
development. In this context, assessing the  
investment attractiveness of Ukraine's economy is 
a prerequisite for sustainable development, long- 
term vision and prompt adoption of balanced 
management decisions.

One of the basic prerequisites for qualitative 
economic changes is the improvement of the level 
of investment attractiveness of the state economy in 
the context of transformational changes, increasing 
the volume of investment capital, and ensuring 
the implementation of qualitatively innovative  
investment projects in Ukraine. The purpose of this 
scientific research is to analyse the rating positions of 
Ukraine in the system of international assessments  
of the level of investment attractiveness of the  
economy as the main dominant in attracting  
investment capital for a long-term period. The main  
task of the scientific publication is the necessity to 
analyse the current state of investment attractiveness  
of the national economy and to define priority 
directions of its further strategic development. The 
concretisation of methodological approaches to the 
assessment of the level of investment attractiveness 
of the national economy through the prism of rating  
assessments of various agencies becomes a prerequisite  

for the formation of modern methods, principles, 
forms, priority tools of state regulation of this  
process. Thus, the use of innovative methods and 
methodologies of conducting scientific research in 
the context of determining the level of investment 
attractiveness of the national economy is a fundamental 
element of the model for successfully attracting 
investment capital and implementing long-term 
strategic investment decisions.

2. Methodological Foundations  
of Rating Assessment of Investment 
Attractiveness of the National Economy

In the context of full-scale military aggression, the 
importance of monitoring the level of investment 
attractiveness of the national economy becomes 
a sharp priority and is a key indicator of the interest of 
the international world community in the economic 
situation in the country. Currently, Ukraine's own 
financial resources are insufficient for the recon-
struction and economic development of the country, 
and there is an acute need to attract funds from  
foreign investors. According to forecasts, about 
1.1 trillion USD will be needed to compensate for 
Ukraine's losses Sait Derzhavnoi sluzhby statystyky 
(Official website of the State Statistics Service of 
Ukraine, 2023).

The main stages of the rating assessment of the 
investment attractiveness of the country's economy  
can be formulated as follows (Figure 1).

When analysing methodological approaches to the 
assessment of the level of investment attractiveness  
of the national economy, it can be concluded that  
there is a variance in the criteria used by various 
international agencies and organisations to assess the 
level of investment attractiveness. The diversification 
of relevant approaches creates conditions for 
the search for an effective mechanism to ensure 
the balance of investment indicators and the use 

PART 1
Collection of general 
(primary) information

PART 2
Analysis of external 

and internal influence 
factors

PART 3
Construction of rating 
tables and analysis of 

rating data

PART 4
Voting of the rating 

committee

PART 5
Publication of the 

rating

Figure 1. Stages of formation of the investment attractiveness rating of the national economy

Source: authors' development



Baltic Journal of Economic Studies  

166

Vol. 9 No. 5, 2023
of a unified methodology for rating the level of  
investment attractiveness of the national economy. 

3. Rating Assessment of the National Economy: 
A Comprehensive Approach

The investment attractiveness of Ukraine's  
economy is a fundamental factor in creating the 
preconditions for the country's high-quality  
innovative development on the global stage. 
The investment attractiveness of the state can be  
assessed using a system of indicators from various 
international rating agencies, namely:
– Ease of Doing Business Index;
– Global Competitiveness Index; 
– Investment Attractiveness Index of the EBA. 

A detailed analysis of the indicator metrics is  
possible based on the data presented in Table 1.

A detailed assessment of the level of investment 
attractiveness in Ukraine is carried out by the  
European Business Association (Official website  
of the European Business Association, 2023) by 
interviewing the heads of leading member companies 
from all business sectors to study their vision of the 
state of investment attractiveness in the country  
(Table 2).

As of the current period, Ukraine is experiencing 
a decline in the level of investment attractiveness  
due to large-scale military actions on the territory of 
the state. Thus, the level of investment attractiveness  
of the Ukrainian economy in the second half of  
2022 will be 2.48 points, which corresponds to 
the value of this economic indicator during the 
COVID-19 pandemic. According to the forecast 
indicators of the European Business Association,  

the level of investment attractiveness of the  
Ukrainian economy in 2023 will be 2.82 out of  
5.00 points (Official website of the European  
Business Association, 2023).

According to the assessment of the European  
Business Association, military actions on the territory 
of the state are in the first place among possible  
factors having a negative impact on improving 
the level of investment attractiveness of the state.  
Military attacks on the state's energy system, which 
significantly complicate and in some cases make it 
impossible to conduct business, come in second, 
followed by corruption at various levels.

However, in addition to the factors of negative  
impact, there are several positive shifts towards the 
formation of a high level of investment attractiveness 
of the Ukrainian economy during active military 
actions. For example, according to a survey of  
member companies of the European Business 
Association, such factors may include the granting 
of candidate status to Ukraine for accession to the 
European Union, the abolition of quotas on the  
export of products from Ukraine, and others.

 

4. The Level of Investment Attractiveness  
of the State's Economy:  
Practical Recommendations

A positive impact on investment attractiveness  
can be achieved by reducing the level of politicisation 
of the economy, political instability, and building  
social consensus between levels of government,  
political forces, religious denominations, etc. (Minfin, 
2023). As of 2023, priority sectors of the Ukrainian 
economy have been identified that have robust 

Table 1
Analysis of the investment attractiveness of Ukraine's economy through 
the prism of international rating agencies' indicators

Indicator Evaluation
Year

2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 
( forecast)

Ease of Doing Business 
Index

Rating 142 152 112 83 76 79 64
Maximum value 183 183 189 180 190 190 190

Global Competitiveness 
Index

Rating 89 73 76 85 - - -
Maximum value 139 144 144 138 - - -

Investment 
Attractiveness Index  
of the EBA

Rating 2,15 2,65 2,87 3,07 2,40 2,48 3,21

Maximum value 5,00 5,00 5,00 5,00 5,00 5,00 5,00

Source: built by the authors on the basis of (Department of Electronic Communications Development)

Table 2
The European Business Association's assessment of Ukraine's investment attractiveness in 2010–2022

Rating
Year

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
3,20 2,90 2,15 2,12 2,65 2,57 2,87 3,09 3,07 2,95 2,40 2,75 2,48

Source: built by the authors on the basis of (Official website of the European Business Association, 2023)



Baltic Journal of Economic Studies  

167

Vol. 9 No. 5, 2023 

investment potential (The World Economic Forum. 
Global Competitiveness Report, 2023), (Figure 2).

Increasing the volume of investment capital, 
diversifying the sources of investment and the 
corresponding risks, and providing resources, quality 
and innovative support for the strategic long-term 
investment process will contribute to the growth of 
high value-added production volumes by companies 
in various sectors of the economy. However,  
according to World Bank projections, if active  
military action in Ukraine does not end soon, the 
country could face a GDP decline of 40% by the  
end of 2023. Since Ukraine's access to global financial 
markets is currently closed, budget financing and 
support for international reserves are only possible 
thanks to financial assistance from Ukraine's partner 
countries (Schwab, Zahidi, 2020; The World  
Bank, 2023).

Improvement of investment attractiveness and 
positive dynamics of the volume of investment  
capital will act as an adequate stimulus for the  
growth of the income of the state's population, and 
thus – increase of its investment attractiveness level  
in the international investment capital market.

5. Conclusions
On the basis of the conducted scientific researches 

it is possible to draw conclusions about the  
unsatisfactory state of the investment attractiveness  

level of the Ukrainian economy in the context of 
the complex influence of external and internal 
environ-mental factors. Designing the investment  
infrastructure of the national economy will address 
a number of relevant issues providing high integral 
indicators of the investment attractiveness level, 
taking into account the multifaceted and multivectoral 
development of the national economy in post-war 
conditions.

The dynamics of the investment attractiveness  
indices of the Ukrainian economy according to 
the international rating assessments substantiate 
a significant lag of the national investment market 
from the international investment capital arena. 
Moreover, the consideration of the priority in the 
sectors of the national economy regarding the 
formation of the priority of investment capital  
attraction creates prerequisites for qualitatively 
innovative changes, ensuring the operation of the 
mechanism of innovative transformational complex 
of measures in the field of investment attractiveness  
of the state. Taking into account the complex of 
proposed measures will provide an opportunity to 
increase the level of investment attractiveness of the 
Ukrainian economy at the global level. Thus, the basic 
strategic priority of the state investment policy is to 
create a comprehensive mechanism to ensure a high 
level of investment attractiveness of the economy.  
In addition, it is obvious that after the cessation of  
large-scale hostilities in the country, the priority 

PR
IO

R
IT

Y
 B

U
SI

N
E

SS
 S

E
C

T
O

R
S 

IN
 T

H
E

 U
K

R
A

IN
IA

N
 E

C
O

N
O

M
Y

ENERGY SECTOR
(178 billion USD investment potential)

LOGISTICS AND INFRASTRUCTURE                                                                                
(123 billion USD investment potential)

DEFENCE INDUSTRY         
(43 billion USD investment potential)

AGRICULTURAL SECTOR                                                                                          
(34 billion USD investment potential)

METALLURGICAL SECTOR                                                                                                  
(26 billion USD investment potential)

PHARMACEUTICALS                                                                                                                   
(21 billion USD investment potential)

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES, ROBOTICS                                          
(16 billion USD investment potential)

INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION                                                                                           
(16 billion USD investment potential)

Figure 2. Priority sectors of Ukraine's economy for building investment potential

Source: built by the authors on the basis of (Puriy, 2020; Recovery Plan for Ukraine. National Recovery Council, 2022)



Baltic Journal of Economic Studies  

168

Vol. 9 No. 5, 2023
of sectors of the national economy in terms of  
attracting investment capital will fundamentally 
change, and therefore – qualitatively innovative  
transformations in the economy will emerge, both 
in terms of types of economic activity and in the 

sphere of attracting investment capital. In order 
to achieve the formulated strategic goals, Ukraine 
needs to develop a long-term programme to ensure a  
high level of investment attractiveness of the national  
economy.

References:
Department of Electronic Communications Development (2021). Competitiveness of Ukraine 2020–2021. 
Information review and situational analysis. Kyiv. (in Ukrainian)
Kuzhel, V. M. (2010) Directions for further strengthening the investment potential of Ukrainian enterprises. 
Investytsiyi: praktyka ta dosvid, vol. 21, pp. 3–5. (in Ukrainian)
Official website of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine. Available at: https://ukrstat.gov.ua/ (in Ukrainian)
Minfin (2023). Direct foreign investments in Ukraine. Available at: https://index.minfin.com.ua/ua/economy/
fdi/ (in Ukrainian)
Prokopchuk, O., Horbachova, I., & Mamchenko, T. (2020). Foreign capital in the economy of Ukraine.  
Economy and Society, vol. 37. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32782/2524-0072/2022-37-33 (in Ukrainian)
Schwab, K., & Zahidi, S. (2020). The Global Competitiveness Report Special Edition 2020: How Countries 
are Performing on the Road to Recovery. World Economic Forum. Available at: http://www3.weforum.org/ 
docs/WEF_TheGlobalCompetitivenessReport 2020.pdf
The World Bank. Doing Business Data. Available at: https://www.doingbusiness.org/
The World Bank. Foreign direct investment. Available at: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.
CD.WD
The World Economic Forum. Global Competitiveness Report. Available at: http://www3.weforum.org/
Global foreign direct investment fell by 42% in 2020: China overtakes the USA (2021). Available at:  
https://ucap.io/u-2020-roczi-globalni-pryami-inozemni-investycziyi-vpaly-na-42/ (in Ukrainian)
Official website of the European Business Association. Available at: https://eba.com.ua
Puriy, G. (2020). Currrent state and main trends in attracting foreign direct investments into the economy of  
Ukraine. Market Infrastructure, vol. 44, pp. 199–203. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32843/infrastruct44-33  
(in Ukrainian) 
YeBA: Investytsiinyi klimat v Ukraini vyishov z nehatyvnoi ploshchyny [EBA: Investment climate in Ukraine has 
moved out of negative ground]. Available at: http://agroportal.ua/ua/news/ukraina/eba-investitsionnyi-klimat- 
v-ukraine-vyshel-iz-otritsatelnoi-ploskosti (in Ukrainian)
Recovery Plan for Ukraine. National Recovery Council. July 2022. Available at: https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/ 
625d81ec8313622a52e2f031/62c19ac16c921fc712205f03_NRC%20Ukraine%27s%20Recovery%20Plan%20
blueprint_UKR.pdf (in Ukrainian)
Nebrat, V. V., & Korniiaka, O. V. (2022) Peculiarities of capital formation and investment mechanisms in Ukraine 
as a factor of financial risks in the war and post-war period. International scientific journal "Grail of Science",  
vol. 16, pp. 31–34. DOI: https://doi.org/10.36074/grail-of-science.17.06.2022.001 (in Ukrainian)

Received on: 10th of October, 2023
Accepted on: 25th of November, 2023
Published on: 28th of December, 2023