Solving the housing issue remains a major challenge for the forced internal migrants in creating proper conditions for their full adaptation and integration into hosting communities. To realize the right of internally displaced persons to housing, the state introduces programs that allow migrants to obtain housing on soft loans or through subventions provided by the state budget to local budgets.

USIF also addresses this issue and provides IDPs with housing by financing restoration of community-owned residential and non-residential premises. After all, communities, even with vacant premises, usually do not have the funds to arrange and adapt them for housing purposes.

Since 2015, 119 apartments and 192 dormitory rooms were arranged in 17 facilities, located  in several regions of Ukraine, by USIF in the framework of ‘Promotion of social infrastructure development. USIF V.’ Project. It became possible due to the grant of German Government, provided through German State Development Bank KfW.

In 2018 USIF continued similar activities within ‘Promotion of social infrastructure development. USIF VI’ project, which is also funded by the German Government through KfW. Currently, 13 housing subprojects (objects) are being implemented. In the result of restoration of these objects,  125 apartments for IDPs temporary residence will be arranged. Hence, from 300 to 340 IDPs depending on the composition of the families, will be provided with housing.

The arranged housing will remain in the property of the corresponding community and cannot be privatized. It should be included in the housing fund for IDPs temporary residence in accordance with the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution of June 26, 2019 № 582.

When arranging housing for IDPs, including in the framework of USIF projects, local authorities face difficulties in managing of such funds and allocating housing, particularly in terms of application of the scoring system and attraction of needed by communities qualified professionals (doctors, teachers, etc.) from among IDPs.

In order to provide professional legal support to 11 communities, participating in the current ‘Promotion of social infrastructure. USIF VI’ Project, USIF launched the ‘Legal support to IDPs and local authorities’ program, which is being implemented by ‘Pravo na Zahyst/Right to Protection’ charitable foundation, commissioned by USIF.

The purpose of the program is to promote adaptation and integration of IDPs by providing advisory and informational assistance to representatives of local and self-government authorities, public activists and IDPs themselves.

At the initial stage of the program implementation, ‘Pravo na Zahyst/Right to Protection’  specialists developed a set of model documents in order to assist local governments in regulation of various aspects of providing IDPs with housing.

The set of model documents contains, in particular: a program to provide IDPs with temporary and social housing, apartments on the secondary market that are transferred for temporary use, and apartments on the secondary market with the right of redemption; procedures for providing of these categories housing and procedures for formation of housing funds; scoring system for the evaluation and selection of IDPs.

At the end of September 2020, the set was presented to all partner communities. Presentations were held in Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Severodonetsk and Kharkiv with participation of representatives of the owners of the facilities that are currently being restored by USIF.

The next stage of the program envisages face-to-face and remote legal consultations to local governments aimed at adaptation of model documents for further use according to individual needs of each community, specification orders of settlement and formations of lists IDPs in need of housing, clarification procedures of transferring buildings to the housing fund for IDPs temporary residence.

The program also provides for organization of consultations for IDPs on housing issues, which will help raise their awareness about existing housing programs (local and national) and  procedures for participation in these programs. In addition, information materials on opportunities for IDPs to exercise their housing rights will be prepared and disseminated.

USIF strongly believes that the program will be extremely successful and useful for its beneficiaries.