Reconstructing Ukraine: Four Pathways for Building Back Better
As we approach the fourth winter since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the country is facing a crisis of affordable and adequate housing, particularly in urban areas. Millions of homes have been damaged or destroyed, and 3.7 million people — about 10% of the population — have been displaced internally and need shelter. Since 2022, Helvetas has been actively engaged in Ukraine’s recovery and is now a strategic actor in reconstruction efforts and in shaping new national policies that are inclusive and sustainable.
“When people are displaced, they need shelter and they need work,” says Anastasiia Kostiuchenko, who oversees Helvetas’ programs in Ukraine.
These interrelated needs — which require a mix of agility and longer-term planning — are the guideposts for Helvetas’ activities in Ukraine. Helvetas is working with local civil society organizations (CSOs), government agencies and war-affected communities to facilitate the repair of damaged homes and to rehabilitate essential infrastructure.
“After the war, we want local people and organizations to have the capacity to rebuild Ukraine,” says Anastasiia. Over the last three years, Helvetas’ partnerships and activities have provided learnings on pathways that can lead Ukraine through a “Build Back Better” strategy. The starting block: policies that fit the new landscape.
Anastasiia Kostiuchenko, Helvetas Ukraine Program Manager
1. Create more inclusive national policies
It’s estimated that 2 million homes have been damaged or destroyed due to the war. “We are facing a civil housing crisis,” says Anastasiia.
Millions of internally displaced people, particularly in urban areas, have reshaped the criteria that national policies need to take into consideration. The volume of reconstruction that is needed offers an opportunity to improve policies and to implement the changes on a large scale. But comprehensive housing data is needed to further this effort. A study of social housing reform is currently underway by Helvetas in collaboration with the National Housing Institute, a think tank launched a year ago to support the government of Ukraine in designing housing solutions.
“The study we’re conducting will provide practical recommendations on international best practices in housing policy and will lay out how Ukraine can build a better, fair, modern and sustainable social housing system,” says Anastasiia. “Our aim is for these findings to be reflected in a new and improved legislative framework that supports affordable and accessible housing solutions, especially for vulnerable populations.”
2. Strengthen localization in urban planning
Ukraine has a vibrant and committed civil society, and more than 90% of humanitarian aid is delivered by Ukrainian organizations. These organizations also play a central role in the planning and delivery of recovery projects.
One of the main challenges in the recovery process is the accurate assessment of community needs and ensuring the most vulnerable groups are prioritized. Many CSOs do not have the skills to do this assessment, so Helvetas has developed a methodology for systematically assessing needs.
“The methodology is a road map for understanding the damages, resource requirements, and priorities of communities that were occupied, where hostilities occurred, or where destruction resulted from shelling,” says Anastasiia. “It’s also a means for strengthening local CSOs role in the shelter sector — enabling them to take an active and meaningful role in post-war urban planning.”
Once needs are assessed, CSOs transition to helping communities work with local authorities to meet those needs, including preparing formal requests for assistance. The methodology also covers various scenarios CSOs might encounter in accessing recovery funds.
3. Adopt world-class sustainable construction practices
The methodology also guides CSOs through recovery principles that incorporate modern models for improving infrastructure and social systems so that they become more resilient and efficient. This includes compliance with European Union environmental, social and economic standards; ensuring inclusivity and community participation; and adopting transparent and accountable recovery processes.
“We’re not just doing emergency repairs and construction work. We’re focused on sustainability and demonstrating to local authorities how the solutions we have implemented can be scaled into systemic approaches,” says Anastasiia. “The traditional construction models are heavily reliant on imports. But solutions sourced within Ukraine enhance resilience, are cost-efficient, and are less hard on the environment.”
Swiss companies are also playing an active role in Ukraine’s reconstruction — both in terms of meeting vulnerable populations’ most urgent needs and promoting sustainable construction practices. In the coming months Helvetas will begin work with the Swiss construction company Divario AG to build 330 Swiss-designed prefabricated modular homes for internally displaced people. The project, which is supported by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), will produce the homes locally, creating over 50 new jobs. Adjacent to this project is an ongoing research initiative with the National Housing Institute, which studies modular buildings and the prefabricated construction market in Ukraine.
4. Equip the economy to pilot circular construction initiatives
Rebuilding local economies in regions across Ukraine goes hand-in-hand with rebuilding homes and infrastructure. “Many people have fled from war-affected regions, and local businesses continue to face significant challenges,” says Anastasiia. “Our task is not only to provide repairs. It’s also to attract people to return and live on their land. But people can’t live somewhere with no jobs. So we build a better economic ecosystem as part of the longer-term recovery of Ukraine.”
Part of this ecosystem is also the promotion of circular construction practices that reuse materials from damaged buildings. “Our study shows that there’s still a need for stronger national commitment, more investment, a clearer value chain and better regulation,” says Anastasiia.
“But it is a priority for the future,” she says.
The study, which is intended for use by local authorities and construction companies, details how to use this “war waste” in a cost-efficient way to rebuild. And we’ve now come full circle back to the starting block: “The success of circular construction depends on having the right policies in place,” says Anastasiia.
