This is a summary of the research implemented by NGO “Youth Alternative” for the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine in November-December 2016 in the framework of the project “Addressing conflict-related threats to social security in Ukraine” implemented at the request of the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine. The views, findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of the OSCE and/or its participating States.
Objectives
To map the issues that prevent IDPs (especially, women) from long-term integration to new living conditions in host communities.
To collect and summarize recommendations for local, regional and national authorities in order to enhance strategy and policies for long-term integration of IDPs (with special focus on women).
Recommendations
As a result of focus groups and in-depth interviews, the following suggestions were elaborated, summarized and discussed at the regional round tables:
• Promote employment of youth and female IDPs, use personalized approach to IDPs (employment and retraining given their employment history), establish unified database of vacancies, and provide technical support for IDPs entrepreneurial initiatives.
• Develop mechanisms to provide entrepreneurs among IDPs with special benefits, e.g. tax relief, tax compromise, writing off tax debts for companies that faced force majeure circumstances.
• Together with IPDs and employers' organizations, identify ways to stimulate IDPs taking jobs in the host communities.
• In order to continue doing business for IDP entrepreneurs, it is necessary to resolve at the legislative level the issue of compensation or reimbursement for real property located in the ATO area. A transparent mechanism for exemption from liability for violation of tax laws due to force majeure circumstances should be introduced allowing tax authorities to check and decide if force majeure on tax obligations can apply.
• Establish a status of social enterprises by law; legally define the criteria for enterprises to benefit from this category.
• Combat discrimination of IDPs in the banking sector at the legislative level due to the inability to use fully the cards of Oshchadbank and problems with using cards from other banks. Encouraging banks to provide loans for IDPs to start their own business.
• Provide legislative regulation for IDP housing by establishing preferential crediting, identifying ways to receive compensation for lost housing, etc. The respondents consider it is important to develop and implement a state programme aimed at construction or purchase of housing for IDPs with partial compensation from the state, development of mechanisms for selling the housing in non-government controlled areas.
• Introduce crediting programme for the purchase of housing from primary or secondary market, e.g. with the following conditions:
- first contribution is 5% of the cost; loan at 3% per annum for 30 years;
- minimum package of documents;
- de-conservation of the housing stock of the country and establishment of a single up-to-date register of housing in the public domain.
• Develop a mechanism and timeline for regular checks of IDPs’ (especially families with children) living conditions and violence incidents by social service providers. This can minimize domestic violence in IDP families.
• Develop a system on tax benefits for owners who lease apartments to IDPs to stimulate signing of lease agreements and receiving of subsidies, as well as payment of taxes in accordance with the law.
• Make changes to the current legislation to ensure the right of IDPs to vote. The absence of such provision does not permit IDPs to exercise their constitutional rights and prevent them from integrating into new communities.
• Conduct regular training on legal issues related to IDPs; create public resource to explain the IDP-related legal framework and respective changes in it.
• Reduce court fees for vulnerable citizens, including IDPs. Such high legal costs is one of the main reasons that prevent IDPs from applying to courts for protection of their rights.
• Develop special mechanisms to ensure transparent use of funds allocated to solve problems of IDPs.
• It is necessary to resolve issues that arise for students from temporarily occupied territories while entering the Ukrainian higher educational establishments and develop respective strategy for IDPs and persons from the non-government controlled areas, in particular:
Develop and adopt the procedure for those IDPs who cannot submit a full set of documents for continuing education in host communities;
Identify alternative ways of registration of school graduates from temporarily occupied territories for testing and obtaining necessary information. Since domain gov.ua is blocked in the non-government controlled areas, heads of local schools are forced to collect information about graduates who wish to undergo testing and to join Ukrainian universities that is potentially dangerous for children;
Organize accelerated distance learning studies in schools in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions; provide additional funding for such programmes; increase the number of educational institutions (kindergartens and schools) in host communities.
• Develop a mechanism to ensure priority expensive treatment for IDPs, including the transition to targeted support of IDPs in health care sphere.