UNDP in Ukraine

Preparations for the national gender machinery reform have been completed, while a strategy for gender mainstreaming in education and a concept for the domestic violence prevention mechanism have been developed in Ukraine in 2009. These achievements will allow to proceed with institutional reforms, improving several mechanisms in the state gender policy field. These and other results of the "Equal Opportunities and Women’s Rights in Ukraine Programme" (a joint UNDP/EU project) were discussed during the presentation of the Project's Annual Report.

Larysa Kobelyanska, Project Coordinator, said that 2009 was a very important year for the development of the gender policy in Ukraine since a significant scientific and research work was accomplished during the year, which helped to complete substantial preparations for the transformation of the state policy and the reform of the institutional gender mainstreaming mechanisms.

The accomplished work will allow to take comprehensive measures next year aimed at improving as many as three gender policy areas – ensuring equality between women and men, gender mainstreaming in education, and overcoming domestic violence.

"In 2009, the Programme maintained very close cooperation with the central executive authorities, which resulted in the preparation and publication of a number of documents regulating gender aspects in different sectors," said Larysa Kobelyanska.

In particular, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine issued an Order on gender mainstreaming in its activities, the Ministry of Ukraine for Family, Youth and Sports issued Order "On Approving the Standard Regulation for the Gender Resource Centre"; amendments to Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine "On Conducting the Gender Legal Expert Review" and the Law of Ukraine "On Ensuring Equal Rights and Opportunities of Women and Men" were drafted. Gender working groups were established and corresponding action plans were developed in 10 ministries, said Larysa Kobelyanska.

The Programme also conducted capacity building trainings for public servants attended by 942 participants.

In addition, the Programme organized trainings of trainers and trained 180 trainers who will conduct about a thousand highly specialized trainings within the next two years. Larysa Kobelyanska underlined that the Programme pays a lot of attention to regional cooperation since the policy is only defined in the capital city, but is directly implemented in oblasts.

The regional cooperation is based on Memorandums signed between the UNDP, State Regional Administrations and Regional Councils. Five Regions – Poltava, Sumy, Lviv, Kirovograd and Volyn – joined this cooperation in 2009.

The Project supported a number of activities in different regions of the country. The most positive feedback was received after the 2nd School of Responsible Fathering (Zakarpattya), which resulted in the establishment of the All-Ukrainian Network of Responsible Fathering Organizations, and the All-Ukrainian Gender Education Program for editors, journalists and advertising experts (Kharkiv), which demonstrated that Ukrainian mass media are willing to take into account gender approaches in their work but lack practical knowledge in this sphere.

The Programme partners in Vinnitsya, Zakarpattya, Sumy and Kharkiv regions discussed their cooperation with the Programme in 2009. In the partners’ view, the work has been largely fruitful since every activity brought tangible results.

Ricarda Rieger, UNDP Country Director in Ukraine, said that the UNDP continued its activities in Ukraine despite the global financial crisis. Moreover, UNDP team is very proud to have the possibility to help the Government and people of Ukraine on the way to gender equality.

Sergiy Polyuk, Sector Manager on Health and Welfare at the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine, said that the number of partners and supporters of the Project had increased in 2009, which was demonstrated even by the number of the people who attended the presentation of the Project Report. Sergiy Polyuk said that the European Union paid significant attention to ensuring equal rights of women and men, therefore, the gender equality issues would remain in the focus of the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine over the next years.

Mirja Peterson, Country Director for Ukraine, Department for Europe at Sida, thanked all the partners for the substantive cooperation in 2009. She reminded that SIDA had been introducing gender approaches in Ukraine together with the UNDP since 1998. However, as planned before, SIDA will stop its participation in the joint project in 2010, but will continue its activities in Ukraine within other Sida-funded projects. Mirja Petersen wished all the partners success in the coming year and reassured that the SIDA and the Swedish Government would remain their friends on the way to gender equality.

After the Annual Report presentation, members of the Project Board conducted a meeting to discuss strategic aspects of the next year’s activities.

The full text of the Report is accessible on the website gender.undp.org.ua in the Library=>Documents section.

For more information: please contact Mykola Yabchenko, Equal Opportunities and Women’s Rights in Ukraine Programme, Tel.: +38 044 569 40 75, mykola.yabchenko.@undp.org.ua.