Japan to give Ukraine over $16 mln under Donbas projects

International organizations, namely UNDP, UNICEF and the International Labour Organization (ILO), plan to launch a number of programs in Ukraine to help internally displaced persons and to ensure economic and social recovery of the areas affected by the Donbas conflict, with the use of funds being allocated by the government of Japan.

The official ceremony of signing of two out of the four planned programs took place in Kyiv on Thursday, an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent reported.

The signed were UNDP's projects "Rapid Response to Social and Economic Issues of Internally Displaced People in Ukraine" ($6.3 million) and "Economic and Social Recovery of Donbas Region" ($5 million).

In the pipeline are UNICEF projects aimed to improve the access of children from the affected territory in eastern Ukraine to high-quality education ($3.7 million) and an ILO project for rebuilding schools and hospitals ($1.4 million).

Ambassador of Japan to Ukraine Shigeki Sumi noted that the current aid is meant for providing services and improving living conditions of internally displaced persons from Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Their number as of today has grown to about 1.2 million people.

Ukrainian Minister for Social Policy Pavlo Rozenko in turn said: "I hope that these projects, which will be implemented in the near future, will demonstrate the effectiveness of both the [Ukrainian] authorities and representatives of the international community and civil society. The whole world is with Ukraine today, the whole world wants to help us."

UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Ukraine Neal Walker said that the life of internally displaced persons in Ukraine is hard today, their living conditions are difficult, and they face problems with finding a job. What is more, an attitude to displaced persons has become hostile to a certain degree, and in this connection, UNDP would like to remind of the need to show solidarity with them. The first project of assistance to Ukraine, which was funded by Japan, was signed in November 2014, according to him. Today the United Nations is expanding its presence in the issue of assistance, he added.