Dariia Marchak: Next year’s budget to cut spending on social benefits

Ukraine’s budget for the coming year will see a reduction in spending on social benefits. 

Dariia Marchak, First Deputy Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine, highlighted the financial challenges driving this decision, speaking at a briefing at the Media Center Ukraine. 

“Before the full-scale invasion, the social budget was the largest component of the national budget. Now it’s second, with a significant gap due to the priority of security and defense spending. Currently, nearly 100% of our social budget is funded by international partners, and much of that support comes in the form of loans, not grants. Essentially, we are borrowing to fund our social programs, including a substantial portion of pension payments. The amount of external financial support is limited, and for the upcoming year, we’ve planned to reduce social spending despite our desire to increase it. This is because next year’s financial resources will be even more constrained than they are now,” Marchak explained.

To ensure social payments and services remain sufficient, Marchak said the government will introduce stricter eligibility checks.

“We believe we will still be able to cover essential needs like social benefits, prosthetics, and social services. However, to ensure assistance reaches those who need it most, we’ll implement stricter financial and property checks on those applying for social benefits and services. This is the only way to guarantee the funds allocated in next year’s budget will be enough to cover social payments,” she added.

Read more: https://mediacenter.org.ua/news