Together We Act.
Together We Are Europe

The activities and effectiveness of civil society organizations (CSOs) often remain unseen, and, therefore, not entirely understood by the general public. However, it is difficult to overestimate the importance of the daily diligent and hard work of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians for the strengthening and development of a democratic society in Ukraine. That is why, in the context of the country’s movement towards integration into a single European “family of nations”, the European Union pays significant attention to helping Ukrainian CSOs, especially now, when the country is fighting against the Russian aggressor for the very existence of Ukraine and its democratic European future.

Modern civil society and democracy are inseparable, as it is the democratic order that provides a platform for the free implementation of citizens’ social demands, development of their capacity and meaningful influence on government agencies at various levels and social processes, as well as the right to engage in the adoption, implementation and control of government decisions.

Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the European Union has stood by Ukraine and provided comprehensive military, humanitarian and financial support, including support for Ukrainian civil society organisations and media.

The European Union also focuses on supporting and developing independent media at all levels – from national to local, because, as aptly defined, they are the watchdogs of democracy and the voice of civil society. Their role as carriers of reliable information is particularly noticeable in the challenging times of hybrid aggression, which is widely waged on the information front.

Since the first days of the full-scale Russian war, the EU has indeed undertaken a number of urgent decisions, including by redirecting funding for existing projects to meet Ukraine’s immediate needs, including assistance to civil society organisations (CSOs) and the media, while still maintaining their ability to:

• protect human rights
• protect socially vulnerable groups
• enhance accountability of public authorities
• promote reforms aimed at integration with the EU.

As noted in her speech at the Kyiv Civil Society Forum in December 2023 by the EU Ambassador to Ukraine, Katarína Mathernová, on 24-25 February 2022, donors allowed Ukrainian NGOs to tap into their grants as they saw fit to defend the country from the aggressor. According to madam Ambassador, “Ukrainian civil society has shown an incredible miracle by quickly adapting to the new conditions and becoming the government’s partner in defending the country. In 2022 the EU provided unprecedented 60 million euros for grants to civil society organisations and media in Ukraine. We have thus tripled our support. During 2022, CSOs in Ukraine awarded around 800 grants to grassroots organisations of all sizes and across various sectors.”

Today, the EU not only continues to provide assistance to CSOs throughout the government-controlled territory, but also expands it. Hundreds of organisations working in the areas of human rights, people with special needs, women, youth, children, LGBT communities, temporarily displaced persons, socially vulnerable groups, gender equality, as well as in the development of environmental, business, agricultural, energy, sports, youth, tourism and other initiatives have already benefited from the EU’s irrevocable assistance.

As of the first quarter of 2024, there are 63 EU grant projects in Ukraine with a total budget over EUR 104 million. Under the existing grant projects, 1984 subgrants are managed, and another 346 subgrants are implemented through the Regional Grants facility. The vast majority of subgrants through this facility were received by individual activists (1332) and local CSOs (321). On average, the smallest EU grant amount is EUR 60 thousand, while the biggest one is EUR 10 million. The leaders in receiving EU grants and related sub-grants are civil society organizations in the Kyiv Oblast (over 330 projects), as well as Kharkiv (178 projects), Lviv (174 projects), and Sumy (165 projects) oblasts. Donetsk (116 projects), Chernihiv (106 projects), Zakarpattia (92 projects), Mykolaiv (90 projects), and Kherson (8 projects) oblasts are also active in implementing grant projects with EU support.

As an integral part of civil society that helps to counteract hostile propaganda, ensure access to relevant and unbiased information, protect human rights, fight corruption, build and strengthen national democratic institutions, the media need comprehensive and strong support.

Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale aggression, Ukrainian media have suffered heavy losses: due to hostilities, at least 233 of them have ceased operations (mainly from temporarily occupied territories and regions where hostilities are ongoing); 76 journalists have been killed. Unfortunately, there is a steady upward trend in these statistics. Due to mobilization and/or forced emigration, there has been a chronic shortage of qualified media professionals, and there is a lack of technical, financial, and other resources. During the war, the situation with access to information and freedom of speech is deteriorating, as well as the moral and psychological condition of media workers and the safety of their work cause concern.

In the fight against disinformation, raising awareness and media literacy play a significant role. The European Union is well aware of the threat posed by the constant spewing of Russian disinformation. That is why already in March 2022, the EU imposed sanctions on pro-Kremlin disinformation and information manipulation channels, as well as Kremlin assets. The existence of free, independent and professional media that publish true stories generally contributes to the strengthening of democracy and resilience of Ukraine.

As of today, the European Union supports a number of grant projects with a total budget of EUR 28 million, which are being implemented to support Ukrainian media and journalists in the face of current challenges and threats. In particular, these projects provide financial assistance for the functioning of existing Ukrainian media, the safety of journalists, and the fight against disinformation, psychological media operations, manipulations, etc.

That is why the European Union supports mass media and journalists in Ukraine in the face of current challenges and threats. Over the past few years, over 150 media of various levels have received financial assistance from the EU in the amount of more than EUR 15 million. In particular, the EU supports Suspilne, the Ukrainian national broadcaster, and its flagship initiatives in the field of media literacy.

This list is far from being complete. It is regularly updated and supplemented with existing and new EU assistance programmes for Ukraine. In addition, numerous EU-funded projects that have reoriented their activities should be added to it.

The importance of such large-scale and comprehensive support for Ukrainian CSOs and media is difficult to overestimate, since, according to EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katarína Mathernová, “civil society is and will be a reliable partner on the path to Ukraine’s recovery and its move towards the European Union.”

The all-Ukrainian ‘Together We Act!’ communication campaign will include awareness raising, learning and public activities with various interactive features, both online and offline.

To find out more about the communication campaign activities, please follow the news on this website and the EU Delegation to Ukraine’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter/Х pages.