The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the World Bank have begun working on creating a roadmap for the development of a program to provide Ukrainians with affordable housing. This was discussed during an online meeting between First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko and a team from the World Bank under the leadership of the Regional Director of the World Bank for Eastern European countries, Arup Banerji. Also present from the Ukrainian side were Deputy Ministers of Economy of Ukraine Volodymyr Kuzio and Nadiya Bihun, as well as the Chairman of the Board of PJSC "Ukrainian Financial Housing Company" Yevhen Metsger.
"As a result of Russia's war against Ukraine, several million of our citizens lost their homes, and even more people had to leave their homes due to the threat to their lives. Therefore, we need to create an effective program to provide such people with affordable housing. Moreover, this program should become a driver for both the growth of the construction industry and the economic recovery of the Ukrainian economy. Together with our colleagues from the World Bank, we have started working on a strategy to provide Ukrainians with affordable housing. We have discussed potential implementation models, the possibility of involving resources from commercial banks, modernizing the eHousing program, and creating effective mechanisms for insuring the housing stock against war risks. We are grateful to the World Bank team for their recommendations, professional expertise, and technical support for the implementation of this project," - reported Yulia Svyrydenko on the results of the meeting.
Another topic for discussion was the possibilities of creating a special fund that would finance the relevant program and involve the World Bank and other financial donors in its funding. During the meeting, the parties agreed to expand the circle of participants in the discussion, involving representatives of the National Bank of Ukraine, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine, and other interested parties.
