Georgian experts working for the government of Ukraine suggested employing the blockchain technology for the national database.

Boris Lozhkin, head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine, shared this information in his blog early in the morning this Monday. The idea was voiced at the Saturday meeting along with other innovative suggestions concerning the reformation of Ukrainian public administration.

Applying blockchain technologies to the national database may be useful in different ways. “This will rule out manipulations in the databases, eliminate the database ownership monopoly and stimulate competition. At the same time, the participation of the private sector in maintaining the databases will make it possible not to spend millions of UAH on buying servers and will fasten the process of getting documents,” writes Lozhkin referring to the experts.

The other steps suggested by the Georgian reformers have little to do with blockchain proper but are also related to the idea of digitising and decentralising some governmental functions. Thus, Lozhkin mentions providing public access to all the information about state-owned companies and selling them through electronic auctions. He also speaks about a new method of taxation with the help of private tax collectors. So these measures remain within the same general trend.

The Ukrainian government seems to be interested in cryptocurrencies and the underlying technologies. During 2015 the country has become an important place for the international bitcoin community. In January Lviv hosted the “Blockchain Incredible Party”, where industry representatives discussed the present and the future of blockchain and bitcoin. CoinFox has recently written that the National Bank of Ukraine may allow non-banking entities to issue digital currencies.

Several ex-officials from Georgia were given various positions in Ukraine during 2014 and 2015, including the former president of the republic Mikheil Saakashvili, who was appointed a governor of the Odessa region in 2015. These officials were invited by Petro Poroshenko, Ukrainian president elected in 2014, to share their experience of reforms that Saakashvili and his team carried out in Georgia during his presidencies in 2004 – 2007 and 2008 – 2013.

Andrew Levich