Ukraine introduces veteran's assistant role to support soldiers' return to civilian life
Ukraine introduces the Institute of the Veteran's Assistant that will start working in the fall, Ukraine's Ministry of Veterans Affairs expects.
Yulia Laputina, Minister of Veterans Affairs, stated this in an interview with Radio Svoboda, Rubryka reports.
What is the problem?
During the hostilities as part of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, hundreds of Ukrainian defenders receive injuries of varying degrees of severity.
After treatment, defenders face bureaucratic hurdles, often left with their problems alone instead of fully recovering and returning to civilian life.
What is the solution?
Director General for Strategic Planning and European Integration of the Ministry of Veterans, Svitlana Berezina, explained what the institute of the veteran's assistant would do.
"The Institute for Veteran's Assistance will operate under the principle of equality," said Berezina. "The role of the assistant will include individual professional support of veterans during the transition from military service to civilian life."
The project will initially work in four regions — Lviv, Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Mykolaiv — and "provide guidance and assistance to veterans in acquiring medical certificates, support in training programs or, for example, getting a skills certificate, getting a job, and many other services," the official added.
How does it work?
The ministry will service centers on the district level, providing services to veterans, including in electronic format. The ministry also signed a memorandum with the Association of administrative services centers to create a window for veterans.
Initially, there will be four hundred assistants. They will be prepared and trained. When choosing assistants, priority is given to veterans or family members because they are likely to adhere to the principle of equal treatment.
The assistant will help to correctly apply to the relevant institution for the appropriate certificate and get help.
"They will know the problems of veterans," Yulia Laputina said. "They still need to improve communication skills to fully master the regulatory and legal framework, the list of services, etc. I think the project will already be launched from the fall of this year."
