The Swedish-Ukrainian Polaris Programme ‘Supporting Multilevel Governance in Ukraine’ has completed the selection process for community projects aimed to provide crisis support for maintaining and improving access to public services. Following the evaluation, 42 community initiatives have been selected to receive support for their implementation.

Applications were accepted from 22 December 2025 to 16 January 2026. A total of 276 applications were received from 240 communities across 13 regions of Ukraine, as specified in the competition terms and conditions.

The aim of the selection process was to strengthen existing initiatives in public services that require development or scaling up in the context of martial law and security challenge.

The support involves the provision of computer equipment to set up workstations for service providers or public spaces, as well as expert mentoring.

Applications were accepted in the following areas:

• Development of administrative services (ASC) – modernisation, creation of remote workplaces, introduction of mobile services, digitisation of processes;
• Ensuring the accessibility of services in starosta districts – development of self-service points, strengthening the role of starostas, organisation of outreach services;
• Support for veterans’ policy – digitisation of veterans’ spaces, improving the accessibility of services for veterans and their families;
• Educational initiatives – creation of digital hubs, STEM laboratories, development of pupils’ digital skills;
• Crisis response – restoring or ensuring uninterrupted access to administrative services in conditions of increased security risks;
• Other public services and initiatives to engage the public – development of resilience centres, digital skills, and public spaces.

The evaluation of applications was conducted in three stages and included an analysis of the potential impact of the initiative, its sustainability, the existence of activities already underway, as well as community development in the selected thematic area.

The 42 selected initiatives cover communities in Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Cherkasy, and Chernihiv regions. The supported initiatives include both large urban and small rural communities, ensuring a balance in terms of the scale and type of territories.