POTENTIAL DIRECTIONS FOR IMPROVING THE INSTITUTIONAL ENVIRONMENT OF “GREEN” COMPETITIVENESS OF ENTERPRISES IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The article is devoted to improving the institutional environment for the development of  ”green“ competitiveness of enterprises in Ukraine in the context of European integration, economic decarbonization, and the strengthening of environmental requirements for economic activity. The relevance of the topic is confirmed by the need to adapt the national economy to European climate standards, the low level of enterprises' environmental competitiveness, limited green investments, the fragmentation of the institutional environment, and the impact of wartime challenges on ecological transformation processes. The study aims to identify potential directions for improving the institutional environment for the development of “green”competitiveness among enterprises in Ukraine. The article examines the essence of the institutional environment of enterprise competitiveness management as a system of formal and informal institutions, norms, mechanisms, and instruments that ensure the formation of environmentally oriented competitive advantages. The current state of institutional support for the green transformation of Ukraine’s economy is analyzed, and key problems and constraints in developing the environmental competitiveness of enterprises are identified. It is substantiated that the development of green competitiveness of enterprises requires integrating environmental criteria into the state regulatory system, developing greenfinance institutions, stimulating decarbonization, and implementing circular production models. The presence of systemic problems in the institutional environment is revealed, including regulatory policy instability, insufficient environmental investment, low enterprise innovation activity, limited waste management infrastructure, and insufficient integration of circular economy principles. The study of European experience enabled the identification of key institutional instruments to ensure green competitiveness, including decarbonization mechanisms, environmental taxation, the EU Green Taxonomy, financial support for innovation, environmental standardization, and the development of the circular economy. The research substantiates priority directions for improving the institutional environment, including the development of green investment, the stimulation of resource and energy efficiency, the formation of circular infrastructure, the strengthening of environmental control, the implementation of digital monitoring, support for enterprises' innovative activities, and the development of green competencies. It is revealed that integrating environmental imperatives into the system for creating competitive advantage will increase enterprises' innovativeness, reduce environmental risks, and ensure sustainable economic development.