HOW TO BRING PEOPLE BACK TO UKRAINE: INTERNATIONAL DISCUSSION FORUM HELD IN KYIV
The Forum “Future in Ukraine: Restoring and Developing Human Capital” was organized as part of the third training module of the Community Recovery Academy, a global educational program aimed at training municipal managers for the post-war recovery of Ukraine.
The event, which brought together representatives of the Ukrainian government, local authorities, international organizations and leading Ukrainian educational institutions, became an important platform for discussing key challenges and opportunities. After all, our common goal today is to create conditions for the return of people, restoration of human capital and development of a strong and sustainable Ukraine.
The forum was attended by more than 250 representatives of Ukrainian communities who joined online and offline to share their experiences and develop joint solutions to overcome the challenges of wartime.
The official opening of the forum and the beginning of the discussion were announced by Oleksandr Slobozhan, Executive Director of the Association of Ukrainian Cities, Shane McLaughlin, Chairman of the Integrated Security Foundation (ISF), and Vadym Boichenko, Chairman of the Association of Ukrainian Cities Section of the Development of De-occupied and Temporarily Occupied Communities, Mayor of Mariupol.
During the opening, the speakers emphasized the importance of restoring human capital for Ukraine's sustainable development and stressed the need for international support in this process:
The Association of Ukrainian Cities, through the Analytical Center, the Section for the Development of De-occupied and Temporarily Occupied Communities, the Municipal Recovery Center, and the Community Recovery Academy, is developing solutions to restore territorial communities and save people at several levels. This includes legislative support for community activities, assistance to IDPs, and training of municipal officials individually and in teams. We attach great importance to the exchange of best practices and experience between communities and the development of partnerships both within the country and internationally. This allows communities to learn and apply the best practices of the world
This project (Community Recovery Academy) brings together best practices from across the region, giving more than 100 people the opportunity to share their experiences. This is a great way to develop expertise and learning. Today's event is dedicated to the development of human capital, and it is extremely important that Ukrainians feel that they can live, love, work, and laugh in their country. Projects like this, as well as the UK's wider program, which includes stabilization efforts, security sector reform, war crimes investigations, and strategic communications, are all contributing to this important process.
The consequences of the war are 12 million IDPs who are asking us for help today. They are begging us to hear their voices. When we talk about the future, we must understand that it will be extremely difficult to rebuild Ukraine without taking this factor into account. It is impossible to revive cities without people, to build production without people. We must clearly understand that the main treasure of Ukraine, the most important thing we have today, is people. And we have to build our work around this, develop relevant legislative initiatives and programs. We cannot revive Ukraine without people. This is what we emphasize in the work of the Community Recovery Academy
The welcome address was followed by four discussion panels that addressed key issues of returning people and rebuilding human capital, strengthening international support for the rebuilding of Ukrainian communities, integration and support for veterans, and investing in workforce development and economic reintegration.
In the first panel discussion, the participants discussed strategic areas of cooperation with international donors, the experience of post-conflict recovery in European countries, and shared their experience in raising financial resources to rebuild infrastructure and support the population.
The discussion on the return of people and the restoration of human capital highlighted important issues regarding incentives for the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs), the situation in the temporarily occupied territories, and the role of the state in creating opportunities for citizens. The results of an all-Ukrainian sociological survey among IDPs were presented, which allowed to assess the main problems they face.
A separate block of the event was dedicated to supporting veterans: social adaptation, rehabilitation and employment. They discussed comprehensive programs for reintegration, retraining, and psychological support, as well as the role of public initiatives and local government in this process. Among the invited speakers of the panel were representatives of partner organizations of the Community Recovery Academy project:
SCM Investment Company focuses on re-engineering our processes to work with the military. We are already working on this, both in terms of the team and in terms of barrier-free infrastructure, where possible. The country is currently in the process of establishing a veteran-centered policy. But the implementation of all programs will take place in communities, on the streets, in the workplace. That is why it depends on the community, on the community's skills, availability of resources, and building of opportunities to a great extent on what will happen to the veteran policy in general. As with all spheres of life in general. We believe that reconstruction, both after the war and now, requires special knowledge and skills, it requires great trained managers, and we are already working on it
Education plays a key role in the process of rebuilding the country, and we at Metinvest Polytechnic understand how important it is to create access to high-quality education for veterans. Our programs not only provide technical knowledge, but also develop multicompetencies, such as critical thinking, digital design, and a deep understanding of production and business processes. Veterans studying at our university have the opportunity to join real industry projects, gaining the practical experience necessary to effectively participate in the processes of infrastructure reconstruction and development of the country. We strive to create the conditions for them to realize their potential and become a driver of change in the post-war recovery of Ukraine.
The Forum has become a platform for constructive dialog between all stakeholders. The participants agreed on the need to further develop state and international programs aimed at returning Ukrainians, strengthening communities and supporting human capital. Key areas for further work were identified, including expanding international partnerships to attract resources for the recovery process, creating effective mechanisms to encourage the return of IDPs and migrants, developing programs for the reintegration of veterans, and investing in education and retraining of the workforce. The ideas discussed will form the basis for further strategic initiatives to be implemented at the state and local levels.
The forum “The Future in Ukraine: Restoration and Development of Human Capital” demonstrated that Ukraine has all the opportunities for recovery and sustainable development through the synergy of the government, international partners and civil society.
“The School of Community Recovery, founded by the Association of Ukrainian Cities and Mariupol Reborn, aims to train municipal managers for the recovery period. The project is being implemented with the support of the UK Government under the UK International Development program and the International Republican Institute (IRI Ukraine) in partnership with Metinvest and SCM. The educational partners of the project are Metinvest Polytechnic and the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
