Directions of entrepreneurial activity stimulation in the context of modern challenges: territorial context

Abstract

The outbreak of a full-scale war has had a negative impact on the entrepreneurial sector in all regions of Ukraine without exception, which requires a serious review and search for opportunities for Ukraine’s transition from states with unstable institutions and inability to develop an entrepreneurial environment to the circle of countries that stimulate entrepreneurial activity. The spatial dimension of these processes is crucial for Ukraine, as the regions differ significantly in the quality and level of development of the entrepreneurial environment. The article aims to identify the main problems of the entrepreneurial sector caused by the full-scale war and to determine the ways to overcome them in the context of reducing interregional imbalances. The article emphasizes the need to find tools and mechanisms that help stimulate entrepreneurial activity, taking into account the spatial dimension of these processes, which is extremely important for Ukraine since regions differ significantly in the quality and level of development of the entrepreneurial environment. The author identifies specific factors that reduce the capacity of certain groups of regions and territorial communities, including the security factor, relocation of enterprises and displacement of labor resources as a result of forced mass displacement of the population, withdrawal of a significant part of land from economic circulation, including due to contamination with explosive devices, destruction of budget-forming enterprises or infrastructure facilities, etc., loss of powerful logistics capacity and tourism as a significant area of economic development, reduction of state support for development, complete loss of logistics capacity, irreversible changes in the development of the agricultural sector (inability to use the territories and deterioration of soil conditions due to contamination by explosive objects, the explosion of the Kahovska hydroelectric power station and the impact on soil fertility in the southern oblasts) and the logistics of agricultural products, and increased burden on engineering and social infrastructure given the growing number of residents due to IDPs and relocated businesses. The article notes that the issue of overcoming regional imbalances in the functioning and development of the entrepreneurial sector in the context of war is, on the one hand, directly related to ensuring the sustainability of economic entities and, on the other hand, is a prerequisite for ensuring resilient spatial development in Ukraine. The author proposes mechanisms and tools to restore economic capacity and entrepreneurial activity in the recovery areas, areas with special conditions for development, as well as promising mechanisms for scaling up the positive economic effects of regional growth poles and sustainable development areas. The article determines that the implementation of the mechanisms and instruments mentioned in the article on the basis of a systematic approach will help to overcome spatial imbalances in interregional and intraregional development and will allow to create an integrated economic space of the state.