Press Release

FORUM TO FOSTER AN INCLUSIVE AND COMMUNITY-DRIVEN RECOVERY OF UKRAINE BRINGS TOGETHER NEARLY 500 PEOPLE IN KYIV TODAY

10 May 2024

The Inclusive Community Recovery Forum brought together nearly 500 people in Kyiv today, including Government officials, local authorities, civil society organizations, community leaders, and national and international development partners. Participants engaged in robust discussions, sharing insights and best practices to facilitate a journey towards a recovery from the devastation caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that is community-driven and inclusive.

Organized by the Government of Ukraine, the Government of Germany, and the United Nations, the forum marked an important milestone towards the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin, scheduled for June 2024, offering communities across Ukraine the opportunity to identify recommendations for the upcoming discussions.

Although Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to cause immense human suffering, death and widespread destruction, the Ukrainian people have taken upon themselves the colossal task of ensuring their communities can get back on their feet and recover from the massive impact of the war. The Government of Ukraine is leading this process.

Throughout the day, the forum discussed ways to enhance collaboration between government, civil society, and development partners, as well as promoting social inclusion and cohesion within communities. From rebuilding infrastructure to promoting gender equality, combating discrimination, and advancing economic recovery, participants showcased their remarkable commitment to building a brighter future for Ukraine.

Amongst other discussions, the group stressed the need for and presented examples of initiatives to ensure that the voices of women, people with disabilities, and marginalized groups – including the Roma and LGBTQI+ community are heard, and their specific needs are taken into consideration.

UN's support to recovery in Ukraine

In 2023, the UN in Ukraine scaled up its support to recovery efforts across the country, implementing over US$500 million worth of initiatives and programmes ranging from supporting small businesses, repairing homes, schools, and hospitals to building new energy infrastructure and beyond. This is more than twice the previous year’s amount and brings the total expenditure to nearly $703 million since the UN started the implementation of the Transitional Framework in September 2022.

Throughout the year, the UN and partners ensured the installation of new heating, water, and energy infrastructure that served 6 million people; supported more than 2,100 small and medium businesses; repaired nearly 1,000 schools; trained almost 320,000 people with skills to help them find new jobs; cleared almost 200,000 square metres of land of mines, explosives and debris; in addition to providing essential services, including primary health care to over 5.1 million women and children. To support long-term recovery, the UN further provided integrated policy advice and technical assistance to the Government, local authorities, communities and civil society organizations, including women-led groups on issues such as environment, agriculture, access to justice, human rights and gender equality.

The work was possible thanks to donors who contributed, between 2022 and 2023, nearly $1.1 billion of the total $1.9 billion the UN requested for our recovery programmes in Ukraine.