Ukraine will become second country after US to conduct census in cooperation with Apple

On 30 November, the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Apple Inc. and Apple Ukraine LLC concluded a Memorandum of Understanding. The agreement was clinched in the Office of Ukraine’s President in the presence of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1465637570554077185 Under the Memorandum, Apple will work together with Ukraine’s ministry in carrying out the national census in 2023. Ukraine will be the second country after the US launch a census in collaboration with the tech giant. Apart from that, Apple will support the ministry in defining and elaborating key projects on the way to paperless state services. In particular, the company will advise on advancing the Diia app based on iOS, the operating system for Apple mobile devices.

Mobile app and web portal Diia (from Ukrainian, “action”) was launched in 2020. It enables Ukraine’s nationals to use documents in digital format instead of physical. Today, Diia provides over 50 state services paperless

Some other ways Apple will help the Ukrainian authorities is by raising the digital literacy levels among citizens by, for instance, fostering the professional development of educators who use the iOS platform. Moreover, Ukraine-Apple cooperation will pave the way for introducing digital technologies to healthcare. "For us, one of the main priorities is to digitize all public services, the work of public authorities," said the President of Ukraine Zelenskyy, recalling the rapid development of ties between Ukraine and Apple following a meeting with the company’s senior leadership in September in Cupertino.

Meeting of the President of Ukraine with representatives of Apple Inc., 30 November 2021. Photo: president.gov.ua

Mark Lennon, Worldwide Head of Government at Apple, mentioned

that for his 23-year experience of work with governments, he is impressed by Ukraine’s progressiveness. He also noted that for Ukraine, “technology is a matter of national security.”

Mykhailo Fedorov, Minister of Digital Transformation, commented:

“The signing of the Memorandum with Apple is an important step not only for digitization in Ukraine, but also for the recognition of our achievements in this field around the world. We are grateful to Apple for constant cooperation with our ministry and the opportunity to implement the world's best solutions to achieve our most important goal - turning the state into a convenient and efficient service that you want to trust.”

The signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation is likely to bring Ukraine a step closer to becoming a more user(people)-friendly state.