The role of policy and economic framework conditions in shaping digitalisation in the agricultural sector in Ukraine
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to examine how political and economic framework conditions influenced the development and effectiveness of digital transformation in Ukraine’s agricultural sector within the Ukraine Facility Plan 2024-2027. The research applied a mixed-methods approach combining policy and regulatory analysis with a structured survey of 127 agricultural producers, local government representatives, and experts, conducted in both online and offline formats between May and July 2025. Quantitative methods were used to identify measurable trends in digital tool adoption, while qualitative content analysis helped interpret the institutional and behavioural drivers of digitalisation. It was established that digital transformation in agriculture functions as a systemic mechanism for improving transparency, investment efficiency, and integration into the European digital space. The analysis of governmental strategies and the Ukraine Facility Plan demonstrated that digitalisation is embedded in six key reforms: EU policy alignment, land market development, investment management, agrarian register modernisation, irrigation enhancement, and demining of agricultural land. The survey results revealed that 37% of agricultural producers already use satellite or drone-based monitoring, 23% rely on GIS tools, 18% employ electronic document management, 14% use digital platforms for administrative procedures, and 8% do not yet apply digital technologies. The priority ranking of reforms highlighted the dominance of EU alignment (average rank 2.0), demining (2.3), and land market reform (2.5). The integration of quantitative and qualitative findings confirmed a direct relationship between the success of digital reforms and producers’ readiness for digital innovation. The practical value of the study lies in its applicability for policymakers, agribusiness associations, and research institutions in designing targeted strategies to enhance digital infrastructure, improve digital literacy, and accelerate sustainable post-war transformation of Ukraine’s agricultural sector
Keywords
digital readiness; agricultural reforms; e-governance; innovation policy; post-war recovery; EU integration; sustainable development
- Abbate, S., Centobelli, P., & Cerchione, R. (2023). The digital and sustainable transition of the agri-food sector. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 187, article number 122222. doi: 10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122222.
- American Sociological Association’s Code of Ethic. (1997). Retrieved from https://surl.li/inyfrm.
- Borodina, O. (2022). The agricultural system of Ukraine in the post-war period should become socially, environmentally, and economically sustainable: Civil society demand. Ukrainian Society, 4(83), 112-118.
- Câmpeanu, V. (2022). The effects of the war in Ukraine – the global food crisis becomes more real. Euroinfo, 6(1), 3-15.
- Celi, G., Guarascio, D., Reljic, J., Simonazzi, A., & Zezza, F. (2022). The asymmetric impact of war: Resilience, vulnerability and implications for EU policy. Intereconomics, 57, 141-147. doi: 10.1007/s10272-022-1049-2.
- Cherep, A., & Sarbey, L. (2023). Digitalisation as a tool for rebuilding the economy of Ukraine in the post-war period. Young Scientist, 12(124), 184-188. doi: 10.32839/2304-5809/2023-12-124-4.
- Devaux, A., Torero, M., Donovan, J., & Horton, D. (2018). Agricultural innovation and inclusive value-chain development: A review. Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies, 8(1), 99-123. doi: 10.1108/ JADEE-06-2017-0065.
- Doukas, Y.E.L., Maravegias, N., & Chrysomallidis, C. (2022). Digitalization in the EU agricultural sector: Seeking a European policy response. In Food policy modelling: Responses to current issues (pp. 83-98). Cham: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-08317-4_6.
- Farace, B., & Tarabella, A. (2024). Exploring the role of digitalization as a driver for the adoption of circular economy principles in agrifood SMEs – an interpretive case study. British Food Journal, 126(1), 409-427. doi: 10.1108/BFJ-12-2022-1103.
- Hurtovyi, Yu. (2025). State support for agriculture in the context of Ukraine’s economic security: Identification of key measures in the EU, Canada, the USA, and New Zealand’s conceptual models. Economic Sustainability and Business Practices, 2(2), 25-44. doi: 10.21272/esbp.2025.2-04.
- Kosmidailo, I., & Makoviichuk, O. (2025). Possibilities of Using digital platforms in agricultural management in Ukraine based on advanced foreign experience. Bulletin of the Academy of Labor, Social Relations and Tourism. Series: Economics, Psychology and Management, 3. doi: 10.54929/3041-2390-2025-03-01-03.
- KSE Agrocenter. (2022). War impacts on Ukrainian agriculture. Retrieved from https://kse.ua/war-impacts-onukrainian-agriculture/.
- Kyivstar Business Hub. (2022). Agribusiness during the war: Challenges and prospects. Retrieved from https:// hub.kyivstar.ua/articles/agrarnyj-biznes-pid-chas-vijny-trudnoshhi-ta-perspektyvy.
- Law of Ukraine No. 13202-1 “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on the Organizational Foundations for Support in the Agricultural Sector”. (2025, May). Retrieved from https://ips.ligazakon.net/document/ ji12808a?an=2.
- Law of Ukraine No. 3980-IX “About the Information and Communication System ‘State Agrarian Register’”. (2024, September). Retrieved from https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/3980-20#Text.
- Mamonova, N. (2023). Food sovereignty and solidarity initiatives in rural Ukraine during the war. The Journal of Peasant Studies, 50(1), 47-66. doi: 10.1080/03066150.2022.2143351.
- Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine. (2023). Retrieved from https://minagro.gov.ua/.
- Ministry of Economy of Ukraine. (2024). Ukraine facility plan. Retrieved from https://www.ukrainefacility.me.gov.ua/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/plan-ukraine-facility.pdf.
- OECD. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/en.html.
- Pavlishyna, N.M., & Kharin, A.V. (2023). Innovations in the era of digitalization. Visnyk of Kherson National Technical University, 1(84), 179-187. doi: 10.35546/kntu2078-4481.2023.1.24.
- Pryshliak, N., Dankevych, V., Tokarchuk, D., & Shpykuliak, O. (2023). The sowing and harvesting campaign in Ukraine in the context of hostilities: Challenges to global energy and food security. Energy Policy Journal, 26(1), 145-168. doi: 10.33223/epj/161794.
- Public Investment Management System. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dream.gov.ua/en.
- Radchenko, O., Tkach, L., & Dendebera, O. (2023). Financing innovations in the agricultural industry as a component of the digital development of Ukraine’s economy. Scientific Bulletin of Mukachevo State University. Series “Economics”, 10(4), 54-65. doi: 10.52566/msu-econ4.2023.54.
- Sridhar, A., Ponnuchamy, M., Kumar, P.S., Kapoor, A., Nguyen Vo, D.-V., & Rangasamy, G. (2023). Digitalization of the agro-food sector for achieving sustainable development goals: A review. Sustainable Food Technology, 1(6), 783-802. doi: 10.1039/D3FB00124E.
- State Agrarian Register. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dar.gov.ua/.
- State Land Cadastre of Ukraine. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://land.gov.ua/.
- State Register of Real Rights to Immovable Property. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://surl.lu/egvxmk.
- State Statistics Service of Ukraine. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://stat.gov.ua/.
- Strategy of Agriculture and Rural development of Ukraine – 2030. (2024). Retrieved from https://www. agroberichtenbuitenland.nl/documenten/publicaties/2024/06/07/ua-strategy-agro-and-rural-development.
- Taishykov, Z., Tolysbayeva, M., Zhumanazarov, K., Ibraimova, S., & Mizambekova, Z. (2024). Management of innovation processes in agriculture. World Development Perspectives, 33, article number 100566. doi: 10.1016/j. wdp.2024.100566.
- Tomble, R., & Smuts, H. (2023). Agricultural social networks: An agricultural value chain-based digitalization framework for an inclusive digital economy. Applied Sciences, 13(11), article number 6382. doi: 10.3390/ app13116382.
- Vysochyn, І., & Zhuk, О. (2025). Ukraineʼs integration into the digital global space. Foreign Trade: Economics, Finance, Law, 138(1), 42-74. doi: 10.31617/3.2025(138)03.
- Wrzecińska, M., Czerniawska-Piątkowska, E., Kowalewska, I., Kowalczyk, A., Mylostyvyi, R., & Stefaniak, W. (2023). Agriculture in the face of new digitization technologies. Ukrainian Black Sea Region Agrarian Science, 27(3), 9-17. doi: 10.56407/bs.agrarian/3.2023.09.