The Ukrainian Bar Association invites you to the VIII South Ukrainian Forum. This year, we are gathering in the country's key logistics and trade hub for a substantive discussion about what is already working for business in infrastructure, logistics, export and import, — and what tools should be used today to act confidently now and be ready for post-war recovery.

Date: September 12, 2025. 

Venue: Odesa.

The program includes clear answers to key business questions:

• Where to find funding for infrastructure projects: grants, loans, international aid — what works in reality, not just on paper?
• What's new in government support for business — and how to get real money?
• How to adapt logistics to new routes and geopolitics when traditional chains no longer work?
• What barriers are currently hindering exports and imports the most — and who can really help remove them?
• Is it worth waiting for Western companies to modernise ports, roads and railways — and how can we prepare for this?
• How can businesses operate under the pressure of mobilisation restrictions, customs barriers and problems with booking employees?

Participants in the forum will include representatives of government agencies, local authorities, international financial organizations, donor programs, banks, insurance companies, investment funds, as well as representatives of businesses in the fields of infrastructure, logistics, port transshipment, agricultural exports, trading, transportation, and storage.

PROGRAM*

09:30-10:00 Participant registration. Welcome coffee

10:00-10:15 Opening remarks

Diana Yakovleva, Partner at AS Legal, Head of the Ukrainian Bar Association Branch in Odesa Region

Svitlana Sergeyeva, Member of the UBA Board, Partner at Sergeyev's Law Office

Anton Andrienko, Deputy Head of the Industrial Parks and Investment Support Department – Head of the Industrial Parks Policy Division at the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine (online)

10:15-11:30 Session 1. Transformation of the infrastructure market

Moderator: 

Maksym Maksymenko, Partner at AVELLUM, Head of Real Estate and Infrastructure

Focus area:

• Identifying key challenges for Ukraine's infrastructure sector during the war and post-war recovery
• Determining the status quo – the influence of the state, donors and business on the formation of new rules of the game
• Identifying ways to minimise risks for business and attract international partners
• Analysing the model for project implementation – planning, tenders, contracts: current status and expected changes

Experts: 

Mariia Zakharenko, Director of the Recovery and Reform Support Team Mineconomy

Artem Filipyev, Chief Legal Officer at Kernel

Roman Ostroverkh, Director of Roadfreight Department at DSV

Roman Fil, infrastructure development expert

11:30-12:00 Coffee break

12:00-13:20 Session 2. Financing reconstruction, state support, insurance

Moderator: 

Diana Yakovleva, Partner at AS Legal, Head of the Ukrainian Bar Association Branch in Odesa Region

Focus area:

• How businesses can pass the scrutiny of international donors: from ESG compliance to legal ‘hygiene’ of contracts
• State support and business cooperation: from subsidies and grants to cluster models that open up access to financing
• Financing infrastructure projects: how businesses and the state share risks in contracts and tenders
• Survival cases: how companies obtained financing and did not lose it due to legal and compliance errors
• Registration of representative offices of foreign companies in Ukraine: new rules of the game and practical cases

Experts: 

Anton Andrienko, Deputy Head of the Industrial Parks and Investment Support Department – Head of the Industrial Parks Policy Division at the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine (online)

Oleksandr Slavskyi, member of the Odessa City Council

Olga Terefenko, Chair of the Compliance Committee of the Ukrainian Bar Association, Partner at Gravity, Director of the Legal Department at Xplorelink LTD (UAE)

Nadiia Zubchenko, lawyer at Gloria Lex JSC

Oksana Horvatova, Candidate of Law, Associate Professor, Doctoral Student at the Ya. Mudryi National University of Law of Ukraine, Entrepreneur, Specialist in Life and Health Insurance

13:20-14:20 Lunch break

14:20-15:40 Session 3. Transport, logistics

Moderator:

Yuriy Sergeyev, Managing Partner at Sergeyev's Law Office

Focus area:

• Identifying opportunities for involving foreign companies in the modernisation of railways, roads and ports
• Identifying expected steps for Ukraine's integration into the European transport network
• Assessing the adaptation of the transport system to new geopolitical realities, alternative routes for export and import
• Identifying the biggest obstacles to increasing the volume of exports and imports and identifying ways to overcome them

Experts: 

Dmytro Dimchoglo, founder of Orlivka River Port LLC

Oleksandr Lazariev, CEO at LAMARIN LLC, Co-Chair of the Customs Committee of the European Business Association

Anna Lazurenko, Chief Legal officer at NIBULON

Tetyana Titarenko, Managing Partner at LEGRANT Law Company

Viacheslav Kharkavenko, Advisor to the Head of the State Enterprise “Administration of Seaports of Ukraine” on operational issues

15:40-16:10 Coffee break

16:10-17:30 Session 4. Legal Anti-Crisis Toolkit for Business: from risks to solutions

Moderator:

Gryhorii Tripulskyi, Managing Partner at De-Jure Law Firm

The war has placed businesses under constant legal stress-testing. This session will explore how to identify critical risks for teams and operations in advance and apply proven legal tools to prevent operational shutdowns.

Focus areas:

1. Risk assessment: mobilization restrictions, loss of key employees

2. Protection tools:

• Employee deferrals in 2025 — new rules and hidden pitfalls
• Obtaining critical enterprise status: requirements, procedure, and common refusals
• Business and staff relocation: domestic and international aspects, legal nuances and risks

3. Case clinic: how one company successfully managed deferrals and relocation without halting operations

Experts: 

Mykyta Korenev, Director of the Odessa Regional Employment Center

Vladyslav Zaitsev, lawyer at ARES Law Firm, Chairman of the Ukrainian Bar Association's Committee on Migration Law

Oleksiy Zaitsev, Head of the Hilfswerk International Representative Office in Ukraine

Igor Bondarev, Head of the Department for Enforcement of Decisions in the Odessa Region of the Southern Interregional Department of the Ministry of Justice (Odessa)

17:30-20:00 Evening reception. Networking

*The event program is in the process of formation and may be changed or supplemented.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the partners of the event, whose support made the Forum possible:

Expert partner: 

ARES Law Firm

Partners:  

AVELLUM

AS Legal

Sergeyev's Law Office

Session Partners:  

Interlegal

LEGRANT Law Company

De-Jure Law Firm

Gloria Lex

Registration is required to participate in the event.

A 10% corporate discount is available for registrations of three or more participants from the same company. To take advantage of this offer, please contact our coordinator.

Dear UBA members, in order to apply the price determined for members of the Association, we ask you to log in to the website before registering for the event.

Participation is considered confirmed after payment of the registration fee.

The organizers reserve the right to close registration when the maximum number of participants is reached.

For additional information about the event, participation as a speaker, and partnership opportunities, contact the event coordinator at tel.: +38 (044) 492-88-48, +38 (063) 792-30-99 (calls via WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber) or email: tosaulenko@uba.ua. Contact person — Tetiana Osaulenko.

For media accreditation, please e-mail: pr@uba.ua. Contact person — Daria Sydorchuk.