Taking a Break

By Walter Kish

This past week has been somewhat difficult for my wife and me as we were mostly engaged in arranging to move our effects back to Canada. My two-year contract managing a CIDA project here in Ukraine ended earlier in the summer. Since then we have taken some time to travel and enjoy the many splendours of this country, whilst deciding whether to seek out new opportunities in Ukraine or return to Canada to work.

Moving is never an easy experience either practically or psychologically, and living in Ukraine these past two years has implanted far deeper roots in our psyches than we could have foreseen. From the very beginning it has been an exhilarating experience. We had barely unpacked when we found ourselves in the very centre of a full-fledged, though fortunately bloodless, revolution. They were heady days, and we shared the fears and frustrations, as well as the determination of our Ukrainian brethren.

For two years I had the good fortune to be able to work with the rapidly growing Ukrainian credit-union movement, helping to pass on the hard-earned experience and knowledge we have gained in Canada. I learned that there is no shortage of very bright and capable young professionals here, who share the cooperative vision of credit unions throughout the world, and are dedicated to making credit unions a strong and positive contributor to the country’s future. Unsurprisingly and regrettably, I have seen that there is also no shortage of people whose self-interest and greed have made Ukraine a fertile spawning ground for selfish exploitation and corruption. 

Headway is being made, however, and as months add up into years Ukraine continues to make progress, albeit at times grudgingly and painfully slowly, toward democracy and responsible government. It is a spiritual and cultural task as much as one of revamping the country’s political, governmental and economic infrastructures. You can change laws and organizational charts, but until the people change their perceptions, beliefs, and behaviours, very little real change will happen. For that to occur, a generation or perhaps more will have to pass.

Foreign aid projects continue to play a significant role in Ukraine’s transformation into a “Western” country. I would like to continue being a part of that process and will hopefully find the right opportunity to return to Ukraine again in a similar developmental capacity.

The experience of managing a foreign aid project has been an interesting one for me personally, as it was also the first time that I worked for what is commonly known as the public sector. Most of my 30-year career has been spent working for large multinational corporations where I learned my management and executive skills. Although these stood me in good stead in managing the CIDA project, I also discovered that working in the public sector has its own unique facets and requirements, though that perhaps is a topic for another column.

The most enriching aspect of my job was that it enabled me to see virtually every corner of Ukraine. During those two years I was able to visit 23 of the 24 oblasts, plus the interestingly tagged “Autonomous Republic” of Crimea. I got to realize that there is a rich and colourful diversity to both the geography as well as the people living in these various regions. I learned that Ukraine is not all Steppes, that there is far more to Ukraine than farms and wheat fields, that in this new Ukraine, the term Ukrainian now encompasses not only ethnic Ukrainians, but Russians, Tatars, Greeks, Jews, Poles and many other ethnic groups. Above all, I found out that Ukraine is incredibly rich in potential – it is virtually self-sufficient in almost all required natural resources, except possibly petroleum products, and even here there are indications of large untapped and undeveloped reserves in the Carpathians, the Poltava region and off the Black Sea Coast. With good government and proper management, Ukraine could and should become one of the strongest economies in the global marketplace.

This is why I would dearly love to spend the remainder of my working career helping Ukraine realize this future. Despite the difficulties and challenges of the past two years, I have enjoyed myself immensely, and can look back with some pride at having done a good job and made a real impact with the various people and organizations I had the pleasure of working with. After what I hope will be a short break back in Canada, I look forward to coming back here and continuing to make my contribution to helping Ukraine achieve its full potential.