Support System for Veterans Requires Unified Rules and Sound Planning: Audit Findings Were Considered by the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine
The Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Social Policy and Protection of Veterans' Rights considered the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine’s report on the audit on the Institute of the Veteran’s Assistant: Support and Reintegration of Veterans into Civilian Life at its meeting on 13 August.
Key conclusion of the audit: the pilot project did not yield results sufficient to justify scaling up the veteran support system. Despite this, the state began deploying the support system nationwide before establishing the proper conditions for its operation.
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In the process of scaling up planning, the issues regarding normative regulation, staffing, funding and monitoring of outcomes were addressed in an uncoordinated manner. Consequently, the allocated funding did not align with the actual capacity of the communities, and the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine lacked reliable data on workload of specialists and their performance outcomes. The network of specialists was established unevenly. In 20% of communities, the relevant positions were not created at all, and the setup of existing workspaces did not always ensure inclusivity and confidentiality.
While presenting the report, Chairwoman of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine Olha Pishchanska highlighted the significant gap between the planned scale of the network and the regions' capacity to establish it. In 2024, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs estimated a need for 15 000 support specialists, a figure was reduced to 11 400 for 2025. Meanwhile, the regions' proposals envisaged the creation of 1 360 positions in 2024 and 2 755 positions by the end of 2025. As of August 2026, about 3 000 specialists are employed.
«Such discrepancy between the Ministry's estimated requirements and the regions' capacity to establish the network indicates that local staffing, organisational, and financial capabilities were not sufficiently taken into account during the initial planning stage,» Chairwoman of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine emphasised.
The planning shortcomings also affected the utilisation of budget funds. The billion-dollar sums initially allocated in the budget to support the work of over 10 000 specialists were subsequently significantly reduced. Specifically, during of 2024 and the first nine months of 2025, 84% of the allocated subvention amounting to UAH 5,7 billion was reallocated to other purposes.
Based on the audit findings, five recommendations were provided to the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine. These recommendations entail measures to strengthen sound planning for the development of the institute, improve the regulatory framework, align the allocation of subventions with the actual capacity of communities, establish a reliable system for data monitoring and processing, and implement mandatory organisational standards.
Members of the relevant committee and Minister of Veterans Affairs Vitalii Kim agreed with the recommendations of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine.
Chair of the Committee Halyna Tretiakova, for her part, highlighted the importance of the conducted audit, as well as the establishment of unified rules for the operation of the veterans’ assistant initiative at the state level.
Members of Parliament of Ukraine separately proposed to consider the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine’s report at a Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine meeting as implementing the recommendations requires coordinated decisions from several executive authorities.
Chairwoman of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine supported this proposal highlighting the importance of formulating a strategic plan and algorithm, as well as implementing the veteran support policy as a whole.
Following its consideration, the Committee took note of the report of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine. A draft set of recommendations for executive authorities will also be processed. Its approval is scheduled for consideration at the next meeting.
Read more:
Press release: https://rp.gov.ua/institut-pomicnika-veterana-funkcionuje-na-1-5-potuznosti-audit-raxunkovoyi-palati-viyaviv-pricini
