New study highlights need for tailored approaches to post-war recovery in Ukraine’s de-occupied areas

The Legislative Initiatives Lab conducted research that found that de-occupied regions in Ukraine are waiting for individualized approaches to solving their specific war-related problems. At the same time, this process must be coordinated at the state level to prioritize recovery through clear guidelines.

The study's authors announced the results during a press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Rubryka reports.

What is the problem?

Russian aggression against Ukraine caused large-scale destruction. They affected the territory of the country to varying degrees. There are regions where the occupation has been going on for nine years, those occupied for a year and a half, and those liberated more than a year or six months ago. There are those who are in close proximity to the front line, etc. This situation requires the state to develop an effective recovery policy considering all aspects.

What is the solution?

To provide the government and other decision-makers with information to help develop more effective policies, the public organization "Laboratory of Legislative Initiatives" conducted a study, "Restoration of de-occupied communities of Ukraine: analysis of experience and needs."

Screenshots from Tetiana Lukeria's presentation at the press conference at Interfax-Ukraine

The Laboratory of Legislative Initiatives analyzed state policy regarding the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, de-occupied since 2014, and conducted 33 in-depth interviews in February-April 2023 with representatives of state and local authorities, public organizations, experts, etc., regarding current challenges.

The involved expert of the Laboratory of Legislative Initiatives, Tetiana Lukeria, said that among the conclusions and wishes formulated based on the research, there are the following:

• Different approaches to restoring different territories; for example, there should be a preparatory stage for the restoration of territories that are currently occupied;
• Developing criteria to prioritize the restoration of objects, an algorithm for assessing the situation, and determining the priority tasks for the authorities in a certain community. The practice of 2014 showed that sometimes all the objects of a certain territory were restored, and then there was a lack of funds for their maintenance;
• Qualified personnel who could implement the reconstruction policy in the de-occupied territories;
• Objective criteria for the transparent distribution of reconstruction funding. The uniformity of the distribution of resources should be determined and controlled by the central, not the regional, government;
• Involving public organizations as recovery coordinators, who can, together with other actors, monitor the transparency of government decisions, prepare and implement various projects, provide social services, perform an advisory role, etc.;
• Security, education, and health are the main recovery areas identified on the ground.

The event was also attended by representatives of various levels of government, who shared their opinions on the study's findings.

Vitalii Bezhin, head of the subcommittee of the Ukrainian parliament, Verkhovna Rada, called the study helpful in forming a further roadmap for the state: "It would be right for this approach to be implemented in state authorities' initiatives."

At the same time, according to MP Bezhin, the fourth area of recovery, in addition to security, education, and health care, should be administrative services. Unfortunately, the most requested service today is obtaining a death certificate.

Vitalii Bezhin also considers the issue of restoring educational institutions debatable because it requires additional research into citizens' actual needs and their plans to return to the de-occupied territories.

The Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in Crimea, Tamila Tasheva, drew attention to the demographic and security challenges that will arise after the de-occupation of the Crimean Peninsula. She also noted that Ukraine does not recognize occupation documents. It is necessary to consider the stages of their verification because, for nine years, the peninsula's residents inevitably faced the occupation administration in solving their life problems. The main task of the Ukrainian state after de-occupation will be to attract as many citizens as possible, the event participants noted.