During USAID Administrator Samantha Power’s visit to Bucha, Mykhailo Fedorov, Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science and Technology Development and Minister of Digital Transformation, Oleksandra Azarkhina, Deputy Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development, and Anatolii Fedoruk, Mayor of Bucha, briefed the delegation on the process of compensation for damaged property and the results of the eVidnovlennia (eRecovery) programme.
“In the history of our digital state, eVidnovlennia is one of the most complex services to implement and one of the easiest to use. It is very important that the reconstruction process is as transparent and accessible to Ukrainians as possible. The eVidnovlennia service is not just about filing an application in Diia. It is data from a register that records information and cannot be changed. It is a verification of data in other registers. It is the work of the local commission and other tools, such as anti-fraud, which assess how effectively the funds received by citizens are used. There was no such project in the world. Since the launch of eVidnovlennia, Ukrainians have already submitted more than 27,000 applications. More than 1,400 of them have already received financial assistance to rebuild their homes,” said Mykhailo Fedorov.
The team of the Ministry of Digital Transformation started working on the digitalisation of reconstruction at the beginning of the full-scale war. In March 2022, the service was launched in Diia as Reporting of Damaged Property. Since then, Ukrainians have submitted more than 468,000 reports.
All the information received became the basis for the launch of the Register of Damaged and Destroyed Property, developed jointly with the Ministry of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development and with the support of the USAID / UK aid Transparency and Accountability in Public Administration and Services / TAPAS Project.
The register has become the foundation for transparent and effective reconstruction. On the one hand, it stores information about residential buildings and other structures that were affected by the full-scale invasion. On the other hand, the state can use the data to understand the extent of the damage and rationally plan the reconstruction process.
“The eVidnovlennia programme is already giving Ukrainians the opportunity to prepare their homes for the cold weather. This is crucial for Ukrainians who are still considering whether to return home. The assistance approved by local governments reaches over UAH 188 million for more than 2,300 applicants. For our part, we are doing everything we can to help communities to make the commissions work more efficiently and quickly. This includes consulting support and assistance with personnel where it is needed. Our common goal is to return Ukrainians to their comfortable homes,” said Oleksandr Kubrakov, Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine and Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development.
One of the components of the reconstruction is the eVidnovlennia programme, which is being implemented entirely in digital format.
At the first stage of the programme, Ukrainians can apply to Diia and receive financial assistance to repair damaged housing. Over 27,000 Ukrainians have applied so far. 1,400 of them have already received funds totalling over UAH 114 million.
Also this week, we announced an update to the eVidnovlennia service, which will soon allow Ukrainians whose homes were destroyed by russian aggression to receive compensation.
According to Samantha Power, given the experience of countries recovering from war damage, there is a big risk when it comes to the resources needed for reconstruction and recovery. The people who need these resources most are not getting access to them. What is happening in Ukraine through the eVidnovlennia programme is remarkable. Technology allows people to get the help they need immediately.
The delegation visited one of the damaged houses in Bucha, whose owners have already received funding to repair their homes under the eVidnovlennia programme. The funds will be used to make repairs to the house so that people can eventually return home.
During the visit, the delegation also visited the Diia.Business centre, which was also affected by the russian occupation. However, it was quickly restored and the centre is now providing consultations and other services to support Ukrainian entrepreneurs.