They were discussed at an expanded meeting of the Coordination Centre for Civilian Support at the Chernivtsi Military Administration, which was joined by Vice Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.
The participants identified several key areas that need to be addressed:
- According to the Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 930 of 1 September 2023, temporary accommodation facilities (TACs) must be equipped with unimpeded access for persons with disabilities and other low-mobility groups.
According to the latest data, 29 (39.2%) out of 73 temporary accommodation facilities in Chernivtsi region do not have the ability to equip elements of external and internal accessibility infrastructure.
The meeting participants suggested amending this resolution. In particular, to revise some of the standards. After all, many ICCs are equipped on the basis of dormitories built in the 70s and 80s. Accordingly, it is impossible to carry out some of the work there.
- They also discussed the programme of the regional fund for support of housing construction in rural areas, which allows IDPs to take out a loan for housing.
It was proposed to expand it in several ways:
- increase the amount of funding;
- to allow district territorial communities to work under this programme, since currently, under its terms, it is allowed to finance housing only in rural areas;
- to provide for a subvention in the state budget subject to co-financing from the budget of territorial communities.
These proposals will be submitted for consideration by the participants of the meeting on the realisation of housing rights for certain categories of IDPs chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister.
- They also discussed the problem of financing the social sector. Due to the rather low level of remuneration in the region, the number of specialists providing social services is decreasing. Including for internally displaced persons.
- Many educational institutions in Chernivtsi region have been optimised. These include schools, colleges, higher education institutions, etc. The participants of the meeting discussed the need to allow communities to change the purpose of such premises, as this may be one of the ways to solve the problem of housing for IDPs.
Currently, Chernivtsi region receives not only internally displaced persons who have left dangerous regions by evacuation trains, but also those who apply for assistance on an individual basis. Therefore, support for IDPs is one of the region’s priorities and requires a systematic approach and joint work between the authorities and communities.