THE DIGITAL DIVIDE AND INVESTMENT INTENSITY OF ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY IN UKRAINE IN THE CONTEXT OF EUROPEAN INTEGRATION

Abstract

The relevance of the study is determined by the need to accelerate the digital convergence of Ukrainian entrepreneurial activity with the European business environment. Uneven access to technologies, managerial capabilities and investment resources limits enterprise productivity and participation in data-intensive markets. The purpose is to assess the scale and structure of the digital gap by enterprise size, technological complexity and economic sector, and to examine its association with investment activity. The study applies comparative assessment of absolute and relative differences, grouping, ranking, sectoral comparison, rank correlation, resampling and sensitivity analysis. The results reveal a substantial but heterogeneous digital gap. Medium-sized enterprises have the largest absolute disparity, whereas small enterprises display the largest relative lag behind the EU benchmark. This indicates that absolute distance and relative convergence reflect different dimensions of digital disadvantage. The technological gap does not increase consistently with the complexity of solutions; its uneven pattern may be associated with differences in implementation costs, organisational readiness, data-management practices, staff skills and technology prevalence in the EU. Sectoral analysis indicates a positive association between digital disparities and differences in investment activity, but it is sensitive to sectoral composition and insufficiently stable for broad generalisation. The relationship may reflect capital intensity, wartime destruction, asset replacement, infrastructure constraints and other sector-specific factors; therefore, it should not be interpreted as causal or as a comprehensive measure of investment attractiveness. The practical value lies in substantiating differentiated support: accessible basic solutions, skills and cyber hygiene for small enterprises; integrated systems, data governance, analytics, artificial intelligence and organisational change for medium-sized enterprises. Sectoral policy should coordinate digital support with financing, insurance, security, energy, logistics and infrastructure measures to improve programme targeting and support Ukraine’s gradual integration into the European economic space.