Ukraine enters the Women in GovTech 2025 report by GovInsider for the first time

Ukraine is represented for the first time in the international Women in GovTech 2025 report, prepared annually by the specialised media outlet GovInsider. The list of leaders shaping the future of digital public services globally includes Olena Saienko, Head of the Swiss-Ukrainian EGAP Program, implemented by East Europe Foundation.

The Women in GovTech 2025 report recognises women who play a key role in the development of GovTech, digital transformation, and public services. This year, it includes 104 innovators from 30 countries, a record in the history of the initiative.

In addition to Olena Saienko, the GovInsider report features other representatives from Ukraine:

• Halyna Pustova – former Head of CDTO Campus, member of the CDTO Campus Advisory Board;
• Kateryna Chernohorenko – former Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine for Digital Development, Transformation, and Digitalisation;
• Kateryna Podust – Head of the e-Residency Expert Group, Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine;
• Zoya Lytvyn – Head of the Global Government Technology Centre Kyiv.

The presence of Ukrainian women in the report is recognition of Ukraine's contribution to the global GovTech ecosystem and confirmation that, even amidst a full-scale war, it remains an active player in the field of digital transformation.

Women in GovTech is not a ranking in the traditional sense. It is an analytical report and a collection of impact stories that describe how women leaders from different countries are changing approaches to public administration. This year’s theme is “How inclusive tech builds trust for all”.

As part of Women in GovTech 2025, GovInsider publishes an interview with each of the nominees.

“Before looking for a solution, start by understanding the problem. We fall in love with a technology or an idea and start implementing it without checking if people actually need it,” says Olena Saienko.

Read the interview to learn about the Ukrainian experience of digital transformation, the role of partnerships, and how digital services improve people's lives.

The report was made possible thanks to seven partner organisations of the GovInsider community that nominated the innovators. East Europe Foundation became one of these organisations, participating in the nomination and communication process. It is thanks to this collaboration that Ukraine is represented in Women in GovTech for the first time.