Denys Shmyhal

Denys Anatoliiovych Shmyhal (Дени́с Анато́лійович Шмига́ль, ; born 15 October 1975) is a Ukrainian politician and entrepreneur who is the current Prime Minister of Ukraine since 2020. Before his appointment as prime minister, Shmyhal was the governor of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast and an acting vice prime minister in the Honcharuk Government.

As Prime Minister, Shmyhal has been in charge of handling the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ukraine and conducting the defense of Ukraine during the 2022 invasion. As of 2024, he is the longest serving Prime Minister in Ukrainian history.

Biography
Shmyhal’s parents are Anatoly Ivanovich and Irina Feliksovna.

In 1997, Shmyhal graduated from the Lviv Polytechnic. He holds the title of Candidate of Economic Sciences (2003). From his graduation in 1997 until September 2005, Shmyhal worked as an accountant in various companies. From September 2005 to June 2006, Shmyhal was Deputy General Director of a company called "LA DIS". From June 2006 to August 2008, he was Director for the investment company "Comfort-Invest". From September 2008 to September 2009, Shmyhal was General Director of a company called "Rosaninvest LLC".

Shmyhal worked in multiple leading political roles in Ukraine's Lviv Oblast from 2009 until December 2013. Firstly, as the Head of the Department of Economics at the Lviv Oblast Administration between 2009 and 2011. It is there were he met and worked with Oleh Nemchinov who would, in 2020, become Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers in the Shmyhal Government. Shmyhal then became the Head of the Department of Economics and Industrial Policy for the whole of 2012. In 2013, he was Head of the Department of Economic Development, Investment, Trade and Industry.

For the first four months of 2014, Shmyhal was a consultant to a People's Deputy of Ukraine Roman Cherneha (from the party UDAR).

From May 2014 to December 2014, Shmyhal worked as Deputy Head of the Lviv Oblast regional office of the Ministry of Revenues and Duties.

In the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election Shmyhal was an independent candidate in Ukraine's 121st electoral district, located in Lviv Oblast. He gained 188 votes. (Bohdan Matkivskyi won the district with 26,924 votes. )

In the 2015 Ukrainian local elections Shmyhal was a candidate for the Lviv Oblast Council of People's Movement "People's Control". Although "People's Control" did win five seats in this regional parliament, Shmyhal himself did not get elected.

He served as Vice President of Lviv-based frozen goods distributor TVK Lvivkholod from 2015 to 2017.

From 2018 to 2019, Shmyhal served as Director of the Burshtyn TES which is the largest electricity producer in Ivano-Frankivsk, and is part of Rinat Akhmetov's holdings.

From 1 August 2019 until his ministerial appointment, Shmyhal was the Governor of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast.

On 4 February 2020, he was appointed Minister of Regional Development. Shmyhal replaced Oleksiy Honcharuk as the prime minister of Ukraine in March 2020. In 2021, Shmyhal was included in the list of the 100 most influential Ukrainians, according to the weekly magazine Focus. The prime minister was given the 7th place in the rating.

In January 2024, Ukraine's National Agency on Corruption Prevention accused Shmyhal of exposing the identity of a whistleblower who had reported wrongdoing; if found guilty, he will face a fine and be deprived of the right to hold certain positions for one year, followed by him being included in the Unified State Register of persons who have committed corrupt or corruption-related offenses.

Personal life
Shmyhal is married to Kateryna Shmyhal. They have two daughters. Kateryna is a former co-owner of the Lviv “Kamyanetsky Bakery” and a local NextBike bike rental. She sold her shares in these companies in 2019.