Ukraine’s agricultural mine action compensation program: UAH 3 billion allocated for 2025, yet only 10% utilized so far

Although the Ukrainian government has earmarked UAH 3 billion for 2025 to compensate farmers for demining agricultural land, only about 10% of the funds have been used in the first quarter. The state compensation program is continuously refined to ensure it remains accessible and effective for its intended users.

This was announced by Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine Ihor Bezkaravainyi during a briefing at Media Center Ukraine.

“Right now, we have 3 billion hryvnias allocated for the program, but in fact, 10% of the funds have been used in the first quarter. This is a major concern,” he stated.

According to the deputy minister, 2024 marked the first full year of the program’s implementation, during which 50 contracts totaling more than half a billion hryvnias were signed. In contrast, only 18 contracts have been concluded for the same period in 2025, with the combined value of signed and anticipated agreements amounting to roughly UAH 300 million.

“If we take 2024, in approximately the same period, we had 50 tenders and signed contracts for a little more than half a billion hryvnias. This year, in the same period, we have only 18 contracts and about 300 million hryvnias of signed agreements or those that will be signed,” Bezkaravainyi noted.

He also raised concerns about the quality of applications being submitted this year, describing them as “frankly worse.”

“A huge number of applications are being rejected for a fairly simple reason – because they do not contain pollution or are outside the areas that require such work in the first place,” he explained.

To address these challenges, the Ministry has developed an online information platform with step-by-step guidance for program participants. The platform is expected to be launched soon.

“We have created a website, an information platform, which contains all the information about the program and explains step by step what needs to be done to be able to use this program,” the deputy minister said.

Key priorities for the near future include strengthening the outreach campaign and expanding the regional reach of the program among agricultural producers.

“Our goal is to increase the percentage of funds utilization and to use the funds for their intended purpose allocated this year. After we launch the platform, we will advertise it by all possible means and intensify our work in the regions and communicate directly with agricultural producers, build up the capacity of operators, which, again, is being built up through the constant modernization of this program,” Bezkaravainyi emphasized.

He added that efforts are ongoing to support existing mine action operators and bring new participants into the fold.

“Our goal is to strengthen mine action operators. Building market capacity is one part of it. The second is to popularize the program among agricultural producers in order to make the most of the resources we have. And the third step, I think it will be in the future. Looking ahead, we plan to expand the program to other types of plots, and other types of land. They will be related, somewhere close to the ones we have now, but we will try to cover a larger area with this program,” he said.

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