Remarks by the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Denise Brown, during the Inclusive Community Recovery Forum in Kyiv

Dobryi den! Good morning!

I want to tell you all that I find this moment very exciting. I go to a lot of meetings, every single day, but this one is special. And it is especial because you are now part of an official event on the road to recovery leading to the Berlin Conference [Ukraine Annual Recovery Conference]. This is great news and I think we should all applaud that you are now part of this. Community recovery is now a main event thanks to the Ministry for Restoration, to Germany, to you, civil society organizations, regional authorities, local authorities and my colleagues from the UN. So, I am happy to be at this meeting, and I will stay all day long.

I have worked in a lot of places over my career, and in all of those places we are always looking for that magic formula: how do we move from humanitarian to recovery? It is a constant question, and I actually think that maybe in Ukraine, with all that you have to offer, maybe we can find that magic formula. It depends always on the context. And here we have a context in which we can all work together in an absolutely different and exciting way, despite the terrible context of the war – which is caused by an illegal invasion by the Russian Federation. But we are here together, and I think that is a tremendous message. 

So, how do we recognize when it is time to shift?

I wanted to share two small examples with you. If all know Governor [Vitalii] Kim, from Mykolaiv. I know him quite well. Last year, in his office, I sat across the table from him, and he said: Denise, I want to thank you for the humanitarian assistance. Now I want you to stop and I want you to help us to move on. The Governo, the UN, Denmark, the United States, and many other actors were there. And Mykolaiv is moving on. In Sumy, similar conversation. Governor [Volodymyr Artyukh] said: We have a strategy. We have priorities. We need to move on from humanitarian assistance. Can you help connect us to the international actors? And we did. And they are moving on. 

So, despite the war, despite the humanitarian crisis which continues and deepens, there are parts of Ukraine which are already in recovery. And this is thanks to the work that many of you are doing. 

But a couple of thoughts about actually when is that right moment. And it is not just because the Governor says to me: oh, it is the right moment. It is because they know that certain elements are changing. 

And first of all, the security. We are not going to help build schools along the front line in Kherson.  But 40 kilometres from there, yes, we will help. So, security is key. 

Decentralization of planning. Thousands of communities were damaged or destroyed by the war. Yes, there need to be the national policies and standards, so everyone is treated the same way. But only you in the community, who live there, who work there, who have your families there, can actually contribute to the development of that prioritization.

Three very important words that I mentioned yesterday at the President's Conference on Cities and Regions: coordination, transparency and accountability. All of these we are going to hear about them today and the key role that they play. 

Inclusivity. I say this word a lot. And we need to define what we mean by it so that it doesn't become a term that is irrelevant. It means that people with disabilities, women, the Roma community, those who are part of the LGBTQ+ community, the veterans, they all have their place at the table. Not just to sit at that table but to be part of the decision-making process. 

And lastly, the financing. Humanitarian funds will not be used for development, so we need to work with the development donors to ensure that they understand what your plans are, that you are coordinated, that you are aligned, that you are transparent, and that you are accountable.

As the war continues, we see a clear trend of targeting of civilian infrastructure. And we are all watching what is happening in Kharkiv. 

So, we do have to recognize that humanitarian assistance is not going to disappear tomorrow, and we are going to need to be able to do both: the community recovery and humanitarian. In Kharkiv, there is a relentless and repeated targeting of civilian infrastructure. In the Donetsk Region, critical social services are becoming increasingly difficult to access because of the war. So, we are going to have to live together. 

We are going to have to work together: the humanitarian community and those who work on community recovery. And I think today is the beginning of sort of publicly showing that our relationship is there, that we are strong enough to do this together, and that we will move forward in Ukraine. 

Dyakuyu! Thank you very much.