Germany to help 400,000 children in Ukraine continue their education during winter

Some EUR 20 million in aid from the German Government will help 1,380 schools and kindergartens improve their heating systems and boost their energy independence. This cash package will also help keep 10 hospitals running and water systems operational. Overall, this aid will help about a million Ukrainians get through the winter.

The new financial support package from the German Government, channelled through UNICEF, will help 400,000 children in eight regions of Ukraine to continue their education in person and in a mixed format, even in the cold winter conditions.

Thanks to this assistance, 1,380 educational institutions will have fewer disruptions to their work due to power cuts and loss of heating.

The selected educational institutions will receive a one-off payment from UNICEF with the support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the KfW Development Bank. A special commission, comprising representatives of the Ministry of Education and Science and UNICEF, will draw up lists of educational institutions that meet the criteria for receiving this assistance to prepare for winter.

The selected educational institutions will then be eligible to use the grant of UAH 420,000 for the following expenditures:

• Set up autonomous heating and electricity supply.
• Improve the thermal resistance of buildings.
• Purchase and store fuel for heating and water heating systems.
• Take other measures to prepare for winter conditions, such as repairing windows or making shelters more comfortable for children.

"russia is deliberately attacking civilian infrastructure, including schools, in an attempt to disrupt the educational process and deprive children of their right to education. Despite this, we continue to fight and seek resources to keep schools and early childhood education centres operating under any conditions. I sincerely thank our international partners for their support, enabling educational institutions to receive funding for energy efficiency measures and stable heat supply. This will allow schools and kindergartens operating in offline and mixed formats, particularly in frontline regions, to continue accepting students," said Oksen Lisovyi, Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine.

"Germany remains firmly committed to supporting children in Ukraine throughout the ongoing winter period," assured German Ambassador to Ukraine Heiko Thoms. “By helping schools and kindergartens create safe and comfortable learning environments, we are investing in Ukraine's future and the resilience of its citizens. This partnership with UNICEF demonstrates Germany's long-term commitment to supporting the Government, people and children of Ukraine on their path to recovery.”

"This generous winter aid package from Germany comes at a critical time for Ukrainian families," said Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Representative in Ukraine.

"Children, their parents and caregivers are in dire need of a sense of normalcy, which attending school or kindergarten provides. It's about learning and well-being, staying connected with friends, feeling safe and having opportunities to develop vital skills — the foundations of the country's future," he added.

According to the terms of the assistance, the list of schools and kindergartens that will receive grants include municipal educational institutions that provide in-person or blended learning during the 2025/2026 academic year and meet each of the following criteria:

• located in Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson or Chernihiv regions;
• located in territorial communities that do not belong to territorial communities with an insurmountable level of security risk in the education system;
• do not provide temporary or permanent accommodation for students and are not specialised institutions.

The winter aid package is part of a broader framework programme for cooperation in the field of reconstruction between UNICEF, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the German Development Bank (KfW). Therefore, the list of 700 schools that have been selected to receive financial support from Germany under this programme in the winter of 2024 and 2025 will be expanded this year with new educational institutions.