In the Sumy region, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with the community leaders of the region to discuss issues affecting the frontline areas.

Oleksii Kuleba, Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine – Minister for Development of Communities and Territories, attended the event. Mr Kuleba presented the concept of a programme to support frontline regions, which is currently being developed by the Government.

The programme provides comprehensive support to communities living under constant threat. It covers three key areas: people, business, and local self-government.

‘The Sumy region is one of the key regions which experience we use to develop a new policy to support frontline regions. We are not talking about short-term fixes, but a long-term model that provides new tools for people, communities, and businesses,’ said Oleksii Kuleba.

The Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration announced that the programme will provide salary increases for those who remain or return to their communities. This includes public sector employees such as teachers, doctors, and local government officials.

Plans are also in place to increase the availability of subsidies, utility compensation, and preferential mortgages. Free school meals and preferential admission to higher education institutions for young people from frontline areas are also under consideration.

Subsidies are provided to help communities equip shelters, protected schools and critical infrastructure facilities. The development of the Ministry of Internal Affairs projects, related to community police officers and rescue officers, will continue. Communities will be able to receive support to upgrade utilities and implement local projects.

Businesses operating in risky conditions are provided with concessions such as loans, insurance instruments, interest rate compensation, and recovery grants. The Government is developing a mechanism that will enable relocated businesses to select the community in which to pay taxes. A separate discussion is underway to increase the share of reserved employees for enterprises in the frontline regions.

During the meeting with the communities, issues such as a differentiated warning system, preparation for the heating period and support for basic infrastructure, as well as medical and educational networks, were also raised.

All proposals and requests from communities will be taken into account when the programme is finalised. Once final approval has been granted, the Government will present the model.