March McLennan helping Ukraine with public-private transformation

Representatives from professional services firm Marsh McLennan met with leaders from Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council in order to discuss the war-torn nation’s strategy for transformation and stabilization.

The efforts from March McLennan include: Creating a risk data platform that can help the insurance market accurately assess risk across Ukraine; providing insurance for a marine cargo facility that helps ship grain and other essential food supplies out of Ukraine through safe corridors; and raising around $1.4 million in humanitarian aid for the Ukrainian people.

The consultants are working with representatives from across Ukraine’s government, including the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC).

Last week, Nick Studer, CEO of management consultancy Oliver Wyman, traveled to Ukraine to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other top officials. “For some time, Oliver Wyman teams … have assisted the Ukrainian government in seeking investment and preparing for reconstruction,” he said.

“We helped build a war risk data platform to give transparency on war damage for investors and insurers, drawing on the Ukrainian’s extensive and detailed information on damage across the country, and fuelled by their programming and analytical prowess.”

In a statement, Marsh McLennan noted that the company’s support to Ukraine’s transformation will be part of measures put forward by the government of the United Kingdom within the scope of a new insurance scheme to facilitate companies operating in Ukraine.

Andrii Ziuz, the head of the Ukraine’s NSDC, gave special thanks to the government of the UK and the heads of Marsh McLennan and Oliver Wyman in a press release.

With the war still ongoing, there is currently no war-risk insurance for investments or property in Ukraine. A lack of insurance has hindered foreign companies from doing business in the country, where serious operating risks are obviously still at play.

The war in Ukraine has been raging since Russia’s invasion of the country in February of 2022. With the east of the country bogged down in trench warfare with few gains on either side, the outcome to the conflict remains uncertain.

With much of the country susceptible to Russia artillery strikes – even civilian and industrial infrastructure – business largely ground to a halt there in the first months of war. Supply chains around the world have had to cope with the loss of a major supplier of resources and food.

Facilitating the smooth shipment of grain and other food supplies out of Ukraine remains a main priority for international leaders. As war broke out, shipments from the breadbasket country were blocked and importing countries in Africa and the Middle East have been at risk of scarcity. Negotiations for a guaranteed safe corridor for grain shipments fell apart last year after Russia withdrew from the so-called ‘Black Sea grain deal’.

“As the war evolves, we are committed to being there for the people of Ukraine and supporting the global economy,” said John Doyle, president and CEO of Marsh McLennan.

This is not the first time a major American consulting firm has come forward with a project to aid Ukraine as the country continues to suffer major destabilization. Last year, it was revealed that McKinsey & Company, along with BlackRock and JPMorgan, were teaming up in order to build a reconstruction fund that could help the country reach the estimated hundreds of billions of dollars it needs to rebuild.