As part of the Social Forum in Portugal, Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine Oksana Zholnovych met with representatives of the European Parliament. The discussion focused on the financing of social protection programmes currently being implemented in Ukraine.

“Thank you for the support that the European Parliament continues to provide to Ukraine in these difficult times. Thanks to the financial assistance of our partner countries, we are able to keep the social sector running. However, we need to transform our system to meet European standards and this requires new innovative solutions,” said Oksana Zholnovych.

Ukraine has limited financial resources, and to help citizens get through this difficult time, the Ministry of Social Policy is launching additional support programmes, the Minister said.

According to Oksana Zholnovych, some communities located in the area of active fighting are unable to manage their territories on their own. At the same time, there is a large number of people who are constantly moving around the country – they need social services in the places where they are. The Ministry of Social Policy continues to fund some social services to help people adapt to the new realities of life.

The Minister emphasised that the Government was currently planning to create market mechanisms for the procurement of social services.

“Before the full-scale invasion, we made a similar reform in the healthcare sector – we identified a national procurer of medical services, and it showed good results. The introduction of a similar algorithm in the social services sector will allow us to help our citizens overcome the crisis,” Oksana Zholnovych concluded.

The Minister stressed that the prompt implementation of such social initiatives would help prevent large-scale problems in the future.