provided by Research Papers in Economics
ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND PROBLEMS
OF SPECIALISTS TRAINING IN UKRAINE
Borys Samotokin, Prof. Dr. Sc.
Zhitomir Institute of Engineering and Technology,
103 Chernyakhovsky str.;UA.-262005, Zhitomir, Ukraine.
Tel/Fax (+38 0412) 208-541, 241-422.
E-mail: [email protected]
WWW:http://www.ziet.zhitomir.ua
In the given report some peculiarities of functioning the Ukrainian system of education
during the transitional period to the market economy are considered. Entrepreneurship
of the institutes of higher education and small business organizations in Zhitomir region
are presented as an example.
Entrepreneurship to our understanding can be defined in a broad way as business activity with
the following features:
• initiative, constant search for new opportunities, innovations and non-traditional solutions;
• readiness for reasonable risk;
• flexibility and constant self-evaluation;
• persistence and purposefulness.
Not long ago, the social-economic system we lived in, did not allow us to have a the possibility of
entrepreneurship. Now when all restrictions have been lifted, how has Ukrainian society and
Ukrainian system of education responded to the situation?
1. Small business enterprises in Zhitomir region
According to the World Bank and International Finance Corporation at present moment in Ukraine:
• private sector share in the Gross National Product is 40-50%;
• 5% of labor force is employed at small private enterprises ( 20% in Russia, 60-85% in Western
Europe);
• 150.000 small enterprises are registered (more than 2 million in Poland).
The majority of state industrial enterprises are in disastrous situation. The main reasons are as
follows: crisis of non-payment, absence of variable funds, non competitiveness of production, lack
of sale market and others.
The privatization process is slow and painful, it often does not give the expected results.
Let us consider the situation with small business more in details with Zhitomir region as an
example.
Zhitomir region is situated in the north of Ukraine on the border with Belarus, its territory is 30.000
sq. km., population is approximately 1,5 mln. The region is rich in mineral resources and forests.
The main types of industrial productions are machinebuilding, chemistry, instrument making, food,
light and constructional materials. At the end of 1997 there were registered 5.400 small business
enterprises but only 1.140 of them are functioning.
Some indicators of small business enterprise activity are presented in table 1.