We are preparing for the integration of our Defenders into civilian life. This was stated by Minister for Veterans Affairs Yulia Laputina. According to the Minister, the Government has confirmed and approved the initiative of the Ministry for Veterans Affairs on transition from a military career to civilian life. This is a normal practice for NATO countries where this system exists in practice. Our soldiers should receive all the assistance they need.

“After the victory, many people will return to their communities, and we must create all the conditions for them. During this period, we will move on to rebuilding the country and ensuring sustainable development. Therefore, it is important to provide people with tools for their own development so that they can integrate into families and the community economy, and get a civilian profession,” said the Head of the Ministry for Veterans Affairs.

The Minister also said that through several pilot projects, the Ministry for Veterans Affairs, together with the Ministry of Education and Science, was working on establishing Veteran Development Centres in educational institutions. This makes it possible to create flexible and accessible tools for learning a civilian profession. Many aspects of veteran sports development are also planned.

“We all live in the same country and know what real problems service members face, but now we hold almost weekly meetings chaired by the Prime Minister to speed up the process of de-bureaucratisation to provide medical and psychological assistance,” said Yulia Laputina.

She also noted that the Ministry was currently working on a pilot project to establish an institute of veterans’ assistants in Lviv, Mykolaiv, Dnipro, and Vinnytsia regions. The Service Centres for veterans will coordinate their activities.

“We are creating an ecosystem to facilitate the integration of veterans into civilian life. At the same time, we are opening ‘veteran windows’ in the Administrative Service Centres where all relevant services will be available,” the Head of the Ministry for Veterans Affairs summed up.

As a reminder, on April 7, the Government agreed on a draft Presidential Decree on the implementation of the Strategy for the Formation of a System of Transition from Military Service to Civilian Life until 2032.