Yaroslav
NL-UA Trade Mission “REBIRTH OF UKRAINE”
WESTLAND 2024, Netherlands
About Trade Mission: Presentation of Trade Mission “REBIRTH OF UKRAINE”
The Netherlands is one of those countries that have been reliable partners of Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion, which they constantly reinforce with appropriate actions. We are aware of the legal restrictions of Dutch people traveling to Ukraine, so the visiting trade mission of Ukrainians to the Netherlands was received with great enthusiasm. Thanks to the invitation and support of Westland Municipality, which is the world center of horticulture, vertical farming and greenhouse industry, as well as the wonderful location of the World Horti Center, this mission was a great success.
But first the members of our delegation began their acquaintance with the Netherlands from the city Hengelo thanks to the invitation of our partners -World Trade Center Twente. Several Dutch companies in the region presented themselves and explained to the members of the delegation their interest in working in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian mayors were pleased to hear the words of support personally from the mayor of the city of Hengelo, Twente region of the Netherlands, Sander Schelberg who expressed the readiness of a potential twinning with the Ukrainian city, which also prioritizes the development of the latest technologies.
Representative of the regional development agency Oost NL talked about projects of cooperation with Ukrainian development agencies. We ended the visit with a tour to an agro-industrial company Farmax and the successful industrial park XL Business park.
Second, the Site visits day, the main part of the delegation began with an tour to TOMATOWORLD — an information and education center in Westland that demonstrates the great importance of the Dutch greenhouse horticulture sector and its obvious contribution to the world food problem.
Visiting Tomatoworld is an unforgettable experience where all your senses are stimulated. Delegation learnt about the global challenges we face together and the solutions Dutch greenhouse gardening can offer to the world’s food problem. We general received information about sustainable growing methods, innovative methods and knowledge of the Dutch horticultural cluster. And connections are established with partners that interest Ukrainian business.
In the same time Mayors` Club organized a meeting in Gouda between mayor of Zhytomyr Serhii Sukhomlyn and mayor of Gouda Pieter Verhoeve.
The city of Gouda, with the 
personal assistance of the mayor, sheltered hundreds of residents of Zhytomyr at the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, providing them with places to live, proper food, work, etc. The mayor of Zhytomyr thanked Gaudа for all the support, visited the hut and talked with the residents of Zhytomyr. The mayors also discussed areas of cooperation, and although Dutch cities do not sign twinning agreements, discussions have already begun on partnership between cities in the direction of exchange of experience, education, and professional training.
Now the warm words of gratitude from the city of Zhytomyr are immortalized in the historical book of Gouda’s memory
Then we visited one of the biggest greenhouses Dutch producers KUBO.
KUBO -manages complete greenhouse projects. Contracting, engineering, production, construction and service. 75 years in gardening. A stable family company with the third generation at the helm.
During the tour we received general information about company, greenhouse technologies Venlo vs Ultra Clima semi closed greenhouse, KUBO full service grow concept, Smart Growing Team services, greenhouse projects with using of alternative heating resources: waste heat, geothermal energy, bio fermentation, solar energy
Visit to Municipality of Westland
Ukrainian mayors and members of administrations are always interested in getting to know their colleagues and learning more about the work of foreign municipalities. So the municipality of Westrand kindly invited us to visit the heart of their activity.
Westland is the thriving capital and home to the world’s most sustainable Greenport. We are committed to advancing local sustainable food production across the globe.
Located in the Netherlands, Westland boasts the world’s largest concentration of greenhouses, creating a stunning sea of glass visible from above. This thriving greenhouse industry generates over 6-8 billion euros annually. The combined value of the entire cluster approximately doubles that amount. Within a less than 100 square kilometers region, Westland hosts all the key players in the entire chain of greenhouse horticulture, from seeds to growing, packaging, transport, and trade. These efforts are supported by the government, renowned companies, knowledge, technology, and research institutes. With almost 50% of the workforce in the region employed in the greenhouse horticulture sector, Westland is an ideal place for talent, startups, and research, with opportunities to make a lasting impact on a global scale.
Key Player in Innovative Horticulture Solutions
Westland is a key player in the global horticulture industry, as 80% of all high-tech greenhouses worldwide come from the Netherlands, and particularly from this region. In Westland, these systems are not only designed, tested, and developed, but also sold to customers worldwide. Through our extensive knowledge and ecosystem, we build and distribute greenhouses, areas, and complete clusters worldwide, playing a crucial role in securing the world’s food access with high-quality and sustainable products and services. As a result, Westland is a major player and pioneer in the global horticulture industry.
Marc Weerts – Municipal Secretary of Municipality of Westland addressed the intricacies of the democratic process in the Netherlands, with a particular emphasis on the local municipality. In an insightful discourse, the Secretary delved into the fundamental principles underpinning Dutch democracy, highlighting the pivotal role of municipalities as the bedrock of citizen engagement and governance.
Raaskal Foodcreators & Development was the next location for Ukrainian companies to visit, a young, innovative and enterprising company with a modern view of food. Fully certified and extensively developed. From large-scale production to small batches or batch production for start-ups. The creation of Raaskal is connected with the need to make the quality of the restaurant widely available. From supermarket shelves to medical institutions and corporate catering companies.
In the same time Ukrainian mayors attended a special Seminar ‘Local to Local Co-Creation’ in thr Leiden University at The Hague
Professor Jan Aart Scholte, Chair, Global Transformations and Governance Challenges Initiative, Leiden University and Co-Director, Centre for Global Cooperation Research, University of Duisburg-Essen, held a presentation and discussion on the topic “What parameters of good governance are necessary in any cooperation initiatives between Ukraine and by the Netherlands/EU”.
Bijay Dhungana and Jesper Hensen from Mentorix Aps showed the direct and important need to upgrade the skills of all Ukrainian employees of municipalities and business groups with important and internationally recognized professional certifications necessary to support any cooperation between local leaders and create initiatives cooperation between Ukraine and the Netherlands/EU.
More information https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/gtgc/events/seminar-translocal-collaboration-for-good-governance
After that we were invited to walk to City hall Hague to meet with members of the Hague city council.
Members of the Hague Council recently visited Lviv and were interested in exchanging views and additional information for consideration. The discussion was so interesting that the allotted time was not enough and our delegation was invited to visit the city hall again, next day after the council meeting. We could not even think that Dutch government officials can work until 12 midnight at such meetings. But it turned out to be a normal thing for them, they don’t go until they solve all the issues and vote on all the issues at once. There is also something to learn from Dutch colleagues
The mayor of The Hague Jan van Zanen greeted the Ukrainian mayors with warm words of support, talked with everyone who came, devoting all his time in the middle of the night and showing full openness and sincerity.
More about this visit https://www.denhaagfm.nl/dhfm/4832007/oekraiense-burgemeesters-brengen-bezoek-aan-gemeenteraad-na-de-oorlog-aan-de-slag
Thanks to the connections of the Mayors` Club with the administration of The Hague municipality, we managed to organize a separate visit of the mayor and deputy mayor of the Ukrainian city of Dobroslav to the Rosarium of The Hague. Why them? Because Dobroslav is the heart of rose production in Ukraine and a few years ago they won a grant for the creation of the Rose Park project in Ukraine. Of course, they need the experience of their colleagues and we hope that the first mini-project on the “exchange of rose beds” between The Hague and Dobroslav will start a longer relationship.
Special piano concert of young ukrainian talents who lives in the Netherlands now because of the war was a very nice way to end this great day
Finally, April 25 arrived – the day of the key event of the entire Trade Mission NL-UA Economic Recovery Promotion Business Forum ～the Netherlands-Ukraine Cooperation Vision～. All information avout the forum you can read here.
The last day of official program was on April 26 – World Horti Center B2B networking Day
We started from the Seminar: Dutch Government Instruments Facilitating Dutch and Ukrainian Partnerships.
Speakers: Introduction to RVO – Sandra Kolodzinskyi– A brief overview of the general
instruments available, particularly relevant for Ukraine or specifically targeted towards Ukraine (UPF). Focus on various projects that are supported by RVO in Ukraine.
Ukraine Partnership Facility (UPF) – Kim Romeijn. An overview of what UPF is, why its established, its overarching goals and examples of projects and initiatives supported by UPF.
Q&A session with Agrico Agrico shares their UPF journey, spotlighting their strategies, initial challenges, and invaluable lessons learned along the way. Agrico provides insight into the specifics of their project, outlining its objectives, scope etc. and shares how they identified suitable partners.
Harry Kager explained how to utilize the Platform and find Dutch-Ukrainian partners for successful project implementation.
Then we had Pitch sessions time for Dutch and Ukrainian companies (presentations)
After lunch we had a Presentation of Educational process in World Horti Center
Visit to Delphy wich is an independent knowledge and consultancy company, developing and implementing knowledge on fruits and vegetables, both in open field and in greenhouse contexts. Delphy is known for its reliable, cutting edge and independent horticultural knowledge and services, and supports growers worldwide as they produce healthy and tasty food. Delphy has been active in (commercial) greenhouse, open field, and soft fruit projects in Ukraine in previous years. Delphy welcomes the delegation of Ukraine and wishes to explore collaboration on new government-to-business and business-to-business initiatives in Ukraine, and so to contribute to rebuilding Ukraine’s agricultural sector.
Such a busy program caused only one complaint of the members of our delegation – the lack of time for rest. That’s what we left for last. So it was time to go to the sea, visit crazy Amsterdam on King’s Day, admire the beauty of the Keukenhof flower park and visit a small cheese factory with traditional Dutch cheeses.
