Assistance for IDPs, grants for businesses, and a council on de-occupation and reintegration of Crimea

25 August 2022
Assistance for IDPs, grants for businesses, and a council on de-occupation and reintegration of Crimea
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President Zelensky ordered to create the Advisory Council on the De-occupation of Crimea. Meanwhile, the Cabinet introduced grants for businesses and changed the procedure for IDPs applying for state aid. 

Updated procedure for IDPs applying for state aid 

Cabinet resolution # 923 of August 19, 2022 

Decision-maker: the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine 

Who is affected: internally displaced persons and social security agencies 

Summary of the resolution: 

  • the aid will not be provided to persons registered as IDPs before February 24, 2022. The following exceptions apply: 
  1. persons that received monthly personal aid to cover accommodation expenses and public utilities expenses 
  1. persons who after February 24, 2022, were forced to change their place of residence for the second time because of the occupation of the territory they were living in or if they lived on the territory that became a combat zone 
  • if a community where a person lives is included on the list of temporarily occupied territories or combat zones, the person will be eligible to receive the state aid starting from the first day of the following month 
  • the aid will be granted by a social security agency within ten days after the respective application is submitted 
  • persons who applied for the aid before April 30, 2022, but did not receive it will be eligible to receive it anyway for the whole period conditional on them submitting a respective application via the Diia portal. 

What is right: 

  • the resolution fills legislative gaps concerning the aid for IDPs by denying payments for IDPs that moved from the occupied territories before the full-scale invasion and have permanent or temporary accommodation 
  • defends the right for assistance for persons that were unable to receive their aid due to technical or other issues although they had submitted the necessary applications 
  • sets a deadline for social security agencies to make a decision concerning the aid. This will prevent red-tape obstacles for IDPs trying to get aid. 

Grants for businesses 

Cabinet ordinance # 723-р of August 16, 2022 

Decision-maker: the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine 

Who is affected: businesses, the Ministry of Economy 

Summary of the ordinance: 

  • ₴103 mln will be allocated from the government budget to the Ministry of Economy on grants for establishing or developing businesses. In particular: 
  1. ₴74 mln on microgrants for establishing or developing a personal business 
  2. ₴29 mln on establishing or developing businesses of gardening, berry farming, or vine-growing. 

What is right: 

  • the ordinance will boost economic activities and re-orientation of the economy that has to adapt to the reality of the martial law, destruction of whole sectors of production caused by the hostilities and mass migration of the population 
  • the ordinance targets sectors of agriculture that can become a source of raw materials for the processing industry with high added value. 

Advisory Council on the De-occupation and Reintegration of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol city 

Presidential decree # 579/2022 of August 15, 2022 

Decision-maker: the President 

Who is affected: inhabitants of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol city, government bodies 

Summary of the decree: 

  • creates the Advisory Council on the De-occupation and Reintegration of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol city as an advisory body under the President 
  • defines key tasks for the Advisory Council: 
  1. to define priorities concerning the issues of de-occupation, reintegration, and human rights protection on the Crimea peninsula, compensation for damage caused by the russian armed aggression 
  2. to participate in defining Ukrainian positions on key activities of the Crimea Platform 
  3. to prepare legislative proposals on the issues of de-occupation and reintegration. 

What is right: 

  • the Council will be of help in organizing the upcoming summit of the Crimea Platform that is supposed to intensify diplomatic efforts for the de-occupation of Crimea. 

What is wrong: 

  • the President once more creates an advisory body that is supposed to substitute already existing executive bodies. The Advisory Council de facto gets the same power of defining the state policy as the respective bodies from the Cabinet of Ministers and ministries. 

Alternative solution: 

  • a state policy on de-occupation should be designed by joint efforts of the Ministry of Defense, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since there are responsible for defense, foreign affairs, and military planning 
  • a state policy on reintegration should be designed by the Cabinet. The Cabinet is the only state body that has powers concerning defense, internal affairs, justice, economy, education, healthcare, and social policy that will be the core issues during the future reintegration of the temporarily occupied territories into life under Ukrainian law.