On September 4 in Brussels, Acting Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, Tetiana Berezhna, and Executive Director of the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas (ALIPH), Valérie Freland, signed a Memorandum on the creation of the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Fund.
The Fund will serve as a key mechanism for coordinating and managing international financial assistance aimed at preserving and restoring Ukraine’s cultural heritage.
Its main tasks will include attracting donor contributions, organizing competitive project selections, supporting digital transformation in the heritage sector, and developing a professional community. The Fund’s headquarters will be located in one of the European Union member states, with a representative office in Ukraine.
“The Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Fund will become a reliable, transparent platform for implementing concrete projects—from protecting collections to restoring damaged sites. Through clear governance rules and partnerships, we are creating not just a fund, but an effective instrument with long-term impact and accountability. This is a significant contribution to the resilience and recovery of our country,” emphasized Tetiana Berezhna.
Valérie Freland, Executive Director of ALIPH, added:
“ALIPH has already been actively working to protect Ukraine’s cultural heritage in close cooperation with the Ministry and local partners. The creation of the Fund allows us to apply our experience, flexibility, and professional expertise within a new independent international structure. This is an important step in fulfilling our mission—to protect heritage under threat, wherever it may be.”
The initiative to create the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Fund was announced on July 10, 2025, at the Conference on Ukraine’s Recovery in Rome. Since the beginning of the year, the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications has been systematically implementing it: the initiative has been integrated into Ukraine’s Culture Development Strategy until 2030, supported under the Uzhhorod Declaration on strengthening the resilience of the cultural sector, accompanied by expert consultations with international partners and Ukrainian civil society, and backed by legal and financial modeling of the Fund’s future structure.
A significant milestone was a seminar in Florence in June, which brought together international experts to discuss mechanisms for protecting heritage in crisis conditions. The signing of the Memorandum with ALIPH officially begins the practical phase of implementing this initiative.
Background
ALIPH (International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas) is a leading international fund specializing in the protection of cultural heritage in conflict and crisis zones. Since 2022, ALIPH has supported over 500 Ukrainian organizations, implementing projects for collection conservation, site stabilization, and archive protection across the country
