Kyiv, 15 December 2022 – The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine, with the financial support of the Government of Canada, published a compilation of best practices in providing emergency socio-psychological support to vulnerable segments of a population affected by war. The report, Best Practices for Creating an Oblast Service of the Emergency Socio-Psychological Service for Vulnerable Categories of the Population, provides local authorities with examples of solutions for introducing such critical services as the war continues.

The use of mobile social services for this purpose began in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in 2021 to address the needs of vulnerable populations suffering under the conflict there. The 2021 project was continued and supported by UNDP in partnership with Mykolaiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Chernihiv oblast social services centres. The experience thus obtained in the east of Ukraine contributed to creating a mobile service of emergency socio-psychological assistance to vulnerable categories of the population in four other oblasts of Ukraine after the invasion of February 2022 and the start of the full-scale war.

Jaco Cilliers, interim UNDP Resident Representative in Ukraine, said UNDP pays special attention to providing the population of the communities affected by the war with timely emergency socio-psychological support and assistance, in particular, through systematic methodical and methodological support of the oblast social services centres. “Given the difficult situation in the country, it is essential to use new approaches that have already proven their effectiveness,” he said. “Therefore, this compilation of best practices, based on the results of practical work, will become an effective tool that will allow scaling up emergency social-psychological and methodical assistance services to communities and support thousands of people who have faced and survived the cruel realities of war.”

The manual includes brief descriptions of the state of the organization and provision of social services in territorial communities and the need for socio-psychological and methodical assistance. Also included are guidelines for creating and operating mobile services to bring emergency socio-psychological assistance to vulnerable segments of the population.

Background: The collection, “Best Practices for Creating an Oblast Service of the Emergency Socio-Psychological Service for Vulnerable Categories of the Population,” was developed within the framework of the UN Recovery and Peacebuilding Programme (UN RPP) with the Government of Canada’s financial support. The UN RPP is being implemented by four United Nations agencies: the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). Eleven international partners support the Programme: The European Union (EU), the European Investment Bank (EIB), the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, and the governments of Canada, Denmark, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland.

Media enquiries: Yuliia Samus, UNDP Ukraine Head of Communications; e-mail: yuliia.samus@undp.org