Ukraine

Fair Opportunities for a Fresh Start in Business

Running a business in wartime means operating in a highly unstable environment with interrupted value chains, compromised logistics, uncertain imports and exports and weakened markets. Helvetas is working to improve job prospects in Ukraine.

Project Name

Ukraine Economic Resilience Programme (ERP)
Project Phase

2023 to 2024
Funding

SDC and private donors
Thematic focus

Private Sector Development
Skills, Jobs and Income
Sustainable and Inclusive Economies
Urban Engagement

26% of all businesses in Ukraine were forced to (almost) cease operations in the first year of the war and another 50% had to scale down their activities. The World Bank estimates that up to 26% of Ukraine’s population are now unemployed.

The once prosperous and now disrupted agricultural sector is forcing small farmers to seek alternative sources of income. The need is also great in other sectors.

Getting businesses back on their feet

One of the most significant consequences of the war is its impact on Ukraine’s economic foundations and the employment opportunities of future generations. Helvetas is committed to helping small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) recover, enabling business owners and employees to regain financial independence. In partnership with the Mercy Corps, Right to Protection, and partners from Alliance 2015 (Joint Emergency Response in Ukraine of Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide), Helvetas is providing financial grants to help launch or rebuild small and medium-sized micro-enterprises. This support helps prevent business closures and strengthens maintain Ukraine’s economic resilience.

Kseniia Plakhtii - the owner of a small plant studio in Kharkiv, has improved her greenhouse operations thanks to the Helvetas grant program. She invested in plant propagation, making her business more sustainable and less dependent on imports, which are often disrupted due to the war. © Helvetas / Nataliia Zima

1/7

2/7

Oleh Konovalov's bookshop was hit by shrapnel right at the start of the war, destroying parts of the building, the furniture and many books. Thanks to the support of Helvetas, he was able to reopen his bookshop. © Helvetas / Nataliia Zima

3/7

Before the war, Andrii Afanasiev and his wife, Ofeliia, ran a sewing business. After their home and workshop were destroyed in a missile strike in March 2022, they shifted to food production. A Helvetas grant helped them purchase a shock freezer to launch a line of frozen semi-finished products. © Helvetas / Nataliia Zima

4/7

5/7

Welders are needed to repair the infrastructure of buildings that were destroyed and damaged during the war.

6/7

Trainee plasterers at work. © Helvetas

7/7

Adapt vocational training to regional demand

Helvetas supports the retraining courses for adults in vocational education training (VET) professions. These professions are currently urgently needed for the labor market and for people to be able to quickly find employment. Training is provided for professions such as welders, seamstresses, painters, and heating engineers with a focus on renewable energies, financial controllers, plumbers, and plasterers. The trainings are conducted in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Poltava regions.

The focus is on vulnerable groups such internally displaced persons, people with disabilities, multi-child families, single parents, and those who have stayed in regions affected by the war.

With many men serving in the Armed Forces, women are increasingly retraining for professions stereo typically seen as male-dominated, such as auto mechanics, welding and construction.

1/2

With many men serving in the Armed Forces, women are increasingly retraining for professions stereo typically seen as male-dominated, such as auto mechanics, welding and construction.

2/2

Helvetas is also providing systemic support to enhance the vocational education training (VET) capacities in Kharkiv. Support will be provided to 3 VET institutions through in-kind goods for the replacement of damaged or outdated technical equipment, with a view to longer-term institutional collaboration to improve VET curricula and practice.

Through this project, Helvetas will also support its partners nationwide in collecting data, monitoring progress, and designing sectoral VET strategies that align with private sector demand and are tailored to each region. Additionally, Helvetas is strengthening online platforms such as Diia Business, which provides market information, documentation, and support for developing and implementing business ideas.

Finally, Helvetas will facilitate direct access to employment through business platforms or business grants in several sectors, including mechanics, construction, and services. At least 325 individuals will benefit from Helvetas’ “training for employment” program, gaining access to sustainable employment opportunities.

«For me, it's not just a job, it's an opportunity to make a difference in people's lives and help them realize their potential through new skills»

Volodymyr Podenko, vocational instructor (right), here at one of the welding courses held in sign language

Fair Opportunities for a Fresh Start in Business

Getting businesses back on their feet

Adapt vocational training to regional demand

Voice, Inclusion & Cohesion

Wie wir Menschen in Albanien unterstützen

Making Markets and Jobs