Since its founding in 2019, Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation has not just digitalized existing services, but re-defined how citizens interact with the state. Valeriya Ionan, Advisor to the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, talks about the foundation of Ukraine’s success – and how it can serve as a blueprint for countries navigating change in a multipolar world.
Interviewed by Klara Marie Schroeder
Before joining the Ministry of Digital Transformation, I spent most of my career in the private sector - building businesses and processes, launching projects, and working directly with entrepreneurs. That experience shaped my entire approach to digital transformation.
In the private sector, you are trained to think user-first, move fast, and focus on outcomes. You learn that innovation isn't about complexity - it is about solving real problems in ways that are clear, simple, and scalable. So when I entered government, I brought that mindset with me.
At the Ministry, we approach every project as if we are building a product - with design thinking, agile delivery, and constant feedback from users. We treat citizens not as passive recipients of services, but as customers who deserve speed, transparency, and simplicity. This blend of private-sector agility and public-sector purpose is exactly what drives our success. It is how we have built digital culture within the last almost six years.
Since 2019, under the leadership of the Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov - recently appointed as a First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine - the Ministry of Digital Transformation, together with Chief Digital Transformation Officers (CDTOs) across ministries and regions, and a dedicated parliamentary committee, has been building the most convenient digital state in the world.
Ukraine became the first country to introduce digital passports fully equivalent to their paper and plastic versions. Citizens can register a business online in just minutes. We also launched the world's first fully online marriage service via the Diia App - a milestone featured by TIME magazine. Ukraine is now recognized as a European digital transformation tiger. We rank fifth globally for digital public service development - a leap of 97 positions in six years - and first worldwide for E-Participation.
We are creating a new model of government: transparent, efficient, and user-centric. At the core is the Diia ecosystem — our digital infrastructure of public services and tools. The Diia App, with over 22.5 million users, provides access to 30 digital documents and more than 40 public services - everything from ID and tax documents to business registration and pension applications. Complementing it, the Diia Portal offers over 130 services online, making government interaction seamless and accessible for all. To prepare citizens for a digital future, we have launched Diia.Education, a national edutainment platform focused on reskilling and digital literacy. Meanwhile, Diia.City is transforming our tech sector with a special legal and tax framework designed to attract IT companies and global investors. For back-end transformation, Diia.Engine allows government institutions to build digital registries and services with no-code tools, accelerating innovation across ministries. At the same time, Diia.Business serves as a national project with the platform and offline hub network supporting SMEs across Ukraine. Finally, Diia.Digital Hromada empowers local communities by bringing digital tools and governance practices directly to municipalities, ensuring that Ukraine's digital transformation reaches every region.
None of these achievements would have been possible without strong partnerships. At the Ministry, we believe in the "golden triangle" between the public sector, private sector, and civil society. Every initiative and project we undertake is built on this foundation - partnership is not an exception, but the base. We have countless examples, including names you likely know well. We are proud to be shaping the future alongside international partners, governments worldwide, and global and local tech leaders.
From my own experience, successful collaboration depends on three key principles: trust, shared vision, and speed. Trust must be built through transparency, consistency, and tangible results. When businesses see that the government is not an obstacle but a reliable partner, they engage more openly and constructively. At the same time, collaboration needs to be anchored in a shared vision - one that looks beyond short-term wins and focuses on long-term resilience, innovation, and national strength.
This became especially evident in the first days of the full-scale Russian invasion, when public-private cooperation was not just helpful, but vital. And finally, speed is essential. We must move away from bureaucracy and toward co-creation. At the Ministry, we have seen firsthand that when government and business operate as one team - aligned by shared values and a common purpose - we can deliver real, lasting impact. It takes courage, alignment, and a willingness to rethink how we work together. But when those elements come together, real transformation becomes not just possible, but inevitable.
From the very beginning, Ukraine's digital transformation was never just about technology. It was about restoring trust, eliminating bureaucracy, and giving citizens back their time and dignity. We believed that digital tools could achieve what outdated bureaucratic systems never could.
Today, digitalisation is part of Ukraine's identity - it's become pop culture. Diia is not just a name; it's a mindset. A digital-first approach is now reshaping how citizens think, act, and interact with the state. What makes Diia truly unique is its user-centric approach. We reimagine public services the way a tech company would approach a product - with design thinking, speed, and constant iteration. Diia is simple, mobile-first, and fast. No bureaucracy. No corruption. No complexity.
But Diia became far more than just an app or a portal. It is a national digital ecosystem, that I have mentioned earlier - and a powerful example of resilience in wartime. Even in the face of a full-scale Russian invasion, we launched hundreds of essential services to meet the urgent needs of citizens.
For example, eDocument enabled those who fled without physical IDs to prove their identity digitally, giving them access to essential services and support. At the same time, internally displaced citizens could apply for IDP status and financial assistance in just a few clicks — no paperwork, no queues. With eRecovery, we provided a streamlined way for people to claim compensation for homes damaged or destroyed by Russian missile attacks, helping families rebuild faster. Citizens could also directly support the military and national economy through the War Bonds - turning solidarity into action. To strengthen national security, we launched eEnemy, a secure chatbot for reporting enemy positions and collaborators to the Armed Forces. And during infrastructure blackouts, Diia.TV and Diia.Radio were launched to ensure uninterrupted access to trusted, verified information. These tools are more than digital services - they are a reflection of a government that can adapt in real time, act with purpose, and stand with its people.
Diia proves that even in the most extreme crisis, a country can be fast, bold, and digital. It represents a new model of government - one that is transparent, efficient, and built around people, not outdated systems. This is Ukraine's vision for the future. And we are only getting started.
Our greatest capital is our people - talented, educated, and incredibly resilient. That is why we are focused on building a country where people want to live, work, and innovate - a country where technology serves humanity, not the other way around.
Ukraine's tech talent is one of our strongest competitive advantages, and the Ministry is committed to turning this strength into long-term global leadership. Development of human capital is the foundation of this vision. We are transforming the entire learning ecosystem to meet the demands of the 21st century - from launching modern IT studios in schools and scaling education with Mriia, a national educational platform for students, parents, and educators that inspires learning and helps everyone find their place in the modern world.
We are also reskilling and upskilling citizens at scale through Diia.Education. Nearly 3 million Ukrainians have already used the platform, earning over 4.3 million certificates across 400+ educational products — including a new section for byte learning. Every two years, we conduct national research on digital literacy. In 2019, just 47% of Ukrainians had basic or higher digital skills. By 2023, that number rose to 60% — a 12.6% increase in four years. This year, we will not only measure digital literacy again but also evaluate AI-related skills across the population. By the end of 2025, we will also launch a major upgrade to Diia.Education powered by Google's Gemini model. This includes two core features: the AI Navigator and the AI Assistant. This upgrade is a key step in our mission to transform Diia.Education into a lifelong learning ecosystem that empowers every Ukrainian to grow.
At the same time, we know that if we want to build the most convenient digital state in the world, we must invest in the people driving change inside the government. That is why we launched CDTO Campus, Ukraine's first learning platform for Chief Digital Transformation Officers across ministries, regional authorities, and state-owned enterprises. With over 1,000 graduates, 7,000+ applications, 30 unique programs, and 100+ expert lecturers, it's more than just a training center - it's a community of digital leaders. Students learn service design, agile delivery, cybersecurity, innovation policy, product thinking, and citizen-centric governance from both global experts and Ukrainian tech pioneers. Most importantly, they apply that knowledge directly to real public services.
We are also shaping a future-proof labor market through the launch of our WINWIN Strategy, a national framework for talent and innovation. One of its core goals is to prepare Ukraine's workforce for an economic leap across 14 priority sectors, including DefenseTech, MedTech, AI, GreenTech, and advanced manufacturing. By aligning government, education, and business interests, the strategy ensures we cultivate the right talent for high-value roles in areas like AI, cybersecurity, data analytics, and product management. It is a long-term, systemic approach to talent development - designed to power both Ukraine's recovery and its innovation-driven future.
Our formula is simple yet powerful: People + Freedom + Technology. Through bold investments in education, a supportive environment for innovation, and a strategic sectoral focus, we're building a country where every talent can thrive - and where the boldest ideas can scale globally.
Ukraine has proven that digital transformation is not just about launching new tools - it's about reimagining the entire architecture of the state. Our next step is advancing towards an agentic state, where government services are proactive, personalised, and AI-powered. As we move forward, we are carefully assessing both the opportunities and the risks of this next chapter. Our Digital Agenda 2030 and National AI Strategy, currently under development, will guide this transformation.
True transformation happens when institutions, processes, and culture evolve alongside technology. We did not simply digitize bureaucracy - we dismantled outdated systems and rebuilt them around people's needs. Every service, every decision, every design started with a bold vision: to make the state as convenient and transparent as the best tech products in the world.
That mindset became the foundation of Diia - not just an app, but a new model of citizen-state interaction. And we developed it during a full-scale Russian invasion. This experience taught us a powerful truth: you do not build for stability - you build for resilience. Crises do not wait. That is why the digital infrastructure must be ready before the crisis arrives.
Our approach shows that with the right vision, political will, and product thinking, governments can move fast, deliver at scale, and earn people's trust. For emerging economies, this is not just a case study - it is a blueprint. You do not need to wait for perfect conditions. Start with what you have, aim high, and design systems that can adapt, protect, and empower your citizens - no matter what the future holds.
Digital resilience became one of Ukraine's core strengths — the result of strategic choices made early on: adopting a digital-first approach, building all public services to be fast, secure, and mobile-friendly via the Diia super-app. Diia faced its first major test during the COVID-19 pandemic, launching EU-recognized vaccination certificates in-app.
Following the full-scale Russian invasion, we at the Ministry swiftly shifted the strategy to wartime needs - essential digital services were launched to address urgent challenges and support citizens. Services were launched within days or 3 weeks of emerging threats - a pace rare in traditional bureaucracies but standard for Ukraine's digital government. This agility was also enabled by the timely move to cloud infrastructure: just a week before the invasion, a national cloud law was passed. When a missile later hit a data center, systems stayed online thanks to secure cloud storage.
Digital infrastructure will play a foundational role in Ukraine's post-war reconstruction. It is not simply a toolkit - it is the backbone of a new institutional architecture. We have learned that digital ecosystems like Diia can coordinate humanitarian response, deliver essential services under fire, and maintain governance continuity even when physical infrastructure is destroyed.
By digitizing across sectors, from smart cities and cloud systems in energy to AI-enabled building damage assessment, we can dramatically increase reconstruction efficiency, transparency, and resilience. These technologies accelerate recovery, attract investment, and reduce corruption. We are already working on it. At the end of last year, the Government of Ukraine adopted the Ukrainian Global Innovation Strategy WINWIN. It is a comprehensive roadmap to foster innovation by supporting businesses, startups, researchers, investors, and international partners. The strategy is key to safeguarding sovereignty, accelerating reconstruction, and driving Ukraine's transformation into a modern, competitive economy. We are starting to create a future-oriented economy rooted in innovation, resilience, and digital leadership.
The strategy focuses on 14 priority sectors such as DefenseTech, GreenTech, AI, cybersecurity, MedTech, BioTech, AgroTech, and more. These are the industries that will define Ukraine's new economy. The WINWIN Strategy turns human capital into national strength. It ensures that as we reconstruct our cities, infrastructure, and institutions, we are also building the workforce that will drive Ukraine's transformation - and position us as a leading innovation economy in Europe and beyond. This is not just about recovery. It's about reinvention. And it is a win for everyone.
In today's world, power and innovation are no longer concentrated in a few capitals - they are distributed across regions, companies, and networks. This shift means the global technology ecosystem is both more dynamic and more complex. For emerging economies like Ukraine, this is not just a challenge - it is an opportunity.
From our own experience, this new landscape offers real influence to those who can move fast, think creatively, and act with purpose. Ukraine's digital transformation, accelerated during wartime, demonstrates that resilience and vision can outpace resource constraints. Diia can scale globally, not in spite of crisis, but because of it.
But technology does not just reflect the global order - it shapes it. Choices around AI, open-source infrastructure, data governance, and digital values are becoming geopolitical flashpoints. The networks we build today will determine the alliances of tomorrow. That is why Ukraine is committed not just to building smart tech, but to building ethical, inclusive, and human-centered technology.
A multipolar tech ecosystem demands fresh collaboration between governments, businesses, non-profits, and citizens. Ukraine's model shows that small nations can lead - if they unify behind clear values and smart partnerships. We have shown that technological decisions, when guided by purpose, can drive systemic change.
Valeriya Ionan currently serves as an Advisor to the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, where she works at the intersection of technology, strategy, and diplomacy. Prior to that, she spent five years as Ukraine's Deputy Minister for Digital Transformation, leading national and international digitalization initiatives. Valeriya has been recognized as a future leader by Mastercard Legacy, EYL40, ISF Fellows, Vogue Leaders, and UP100. She is also a member of BGD's Advisory Council.
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