Dear colleagues! Fellow Ukrainians!

We are starting a regular meeting of the Government. Today we are holding it in Odesa region.

At night, the enemy continued to attack our cities with missiles and drones.

In particular, russian terrorists attacked Odesa region, where people’s homes and civilian infrastructure were damaged. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded.

My sincere condolences to the families and loved ones.

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We are now in Odesa, holding the seventh regional meeting of the Government of Ukraine in recent months.

The purpose of such offsite meetings is to audit regional problems in order to make concrete decisions for the benefit of people and communities.

We have already discussed the issues that need to be addressed with the regional leadership. We have outlined the main priorities of our work.

The first priority is getting through the winter.

The region has successfully started the heating season. Together with the local authorities, we will do everything possible to ensure that it goes as planned.

Government programmes and initiatives are in place: energy grants and soft loans, targeted housing subsidies and benefits, backup power supply, and the creation of a distributed power generation system.

In particular, Odesa will receive four gas piston units from the partners, which will cover 45% of the city’s critical infrastructure needs. One of these units has already been installed.

Now, a few important things about firewood harvesting. In rural areas, firewood is an important backup and sometimes the main fuel.

That is why there are no restrictions on firewood harvesting for people and there will be no such restrictions!

The controversial draft law on fines for firewood storage will not be signed by the President of Ukraine.

Moreover, the state and the Government will do everything possible to help Ukrainians who harvest firewood to heat their homes in winter.

We have an appropriate support programme for this purpose, which we are implementing together with our partners.

At the last meeting, the Ministry of Social Policy was instructed to develop a mechanism to maintain subsidies for families who have installed energy equipment worth up to UAH 150,000, and to stipulate that the subsidy will not be reduced in the event of power outages.

Today we are making the relevant decision. The Ministry of Social Policy will communicate this in more detail.

The second priority is safe education.

Every day we see the importance and urgency of this issue. During today’s attack on Odesa, Lyceum No. 125, one of the oldest schools in the city, was damaged. That is why the Government pays special attention to the issue of school shelters.

This year, over UAH 500 million was allocated to Odesa region for these measures. Another UAH 57 million was allocated for the purchase of school buses. More than UAH 116 million was allocated to modernise school canteens and almost UAH 130 million – to provide meals for primary school students.

Despite the enemy’s constant attacks, our children must have access to quality education, study full-time and be protected from potential risks.

The third priority is recovery.

More than UAH 1 billion has been allocated from the state budget for various reconstruction projects in Odesa region. The main focus is on critical infrastructure, housing, schools, hospitals, and transport routes.

Today we worked together with Serhiy Sukhomlyn, Head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development, to identify and prioritise reconstruction projects. We are heading in this direction.

The fourth priority is fortifications.

For this purpose, the state has allocated almost UAH 2.7 billion to the region. As of now, 99% of the planned work has been completed.

In total, this year we have allocated over UAH 4.6 billion to Odesa region to implement restoration and fortification projects and to finance other priority needs.

Our fifth priority is the financial sustainability of communities.

In 10 months of 2024, the general fund of the budgets in Odesa region received 30% more money than in the same period last year.

The balances on the accounts of communities have increased by 49%.

The state allocated almost UAH 8.5 billion in inter-budgetary transfers to the region in January-October.

This money will be used to cover critical expenditures in education, healthcare and the social sphere.

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Another important issue.

To further help Ukrainian families, we continue to expand our winter support programme.

That is why today, in line with the instruction of the President of Ukraine, we are making an important decision to support our teachers.

Starting from 1 January 2025, we will introduce a monthly “in-hand” supplement to teachers’ salaries in the amount of UAH 1,000.

From 1 September, we will increase this allowance to UAH 2,000 for each teacher.

This decision is part of our support for those who are teaching and educating the young people who will build the future of Ukraine.

We are grateful to Ukrainian teachers for their dedicated work. Thanks to you, even despite the war, hundreds of thousands of children can continue their studies and receive a quality education.

I am grateful to each and every one of you who defend Ukraine and contribute to the future of our country.

Thank you for your attention!

Glory to Ukraine!