Employment of People with Disabilities will be Discussed in Kyiv

“According to the statistics we have, only 17% of people with disabilities currently have a job in Ukraine. In European countries, this number is many times higher. The situation in Ukraine can really be changed in two or three years. We can reach 50% of the employed during this time, but this requires a large array of changes. Which ones – we will actually discuss with experts during the round table,” explains Daria Sydorenko, the Executive director of “League of the Strong”.

Two panel discussions will take place within the round table. Representatives of relevant ministries, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and public organizations will discuss the key issues of current legislation in the field of employment of people with disabilities. Experts will also share the European experience of solving the problem, the standards of the Council of Europe in this direction.

In particular, participation in panel discussions has already been confirmed by:

• Oksana Zholnovych, Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine
• Tetyana Berezhna, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine
• Halyna Tretyakova, Head of the VRU Committee on Social Policy and Protection of Veterans’ Rights
• Suzanne Mnatsakanyan, Head of the Council of Europe project “Strengthening Social Protection in Ukraine”
• Serhii Nizhynskyi, Adviser to the Vice-Prime Minister on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, UNFPA Expert, Brand Ambassador of the US Charitable Foundation “Help Heroes of Ukraine”
• Olena Rym, Consultant of the Council of Europe
• Vitaly Muzychenko, General Director of theD Fund for Social Protection of Persons with Disabilities
• Darya Sydorenko, Executive Director of “League of the Strong”
• Andriy Tymoshenko, Director of KPMG in Ukraine, Head of Strategy and Operational Improvement Practice, Head of Infrastructure, Transport and Logistics Industry Practice
• Vitaly Pchoklin, Chairman of the Board of the Public Organization “Active Rehabilitation Group”

Tetyana Lomakina, Authorized Adviser to the President of Ukraine on barrier-free Accessibility, Yuliya Resenchuk, President of the Inclusive Country Association and Haydn Hammersley, European Disability Forum Social Policy Employee, are planning to join the event online.

The discussions will be moderated by Ulyana Pcholkina, a Member of the Board of the “Active Rehabilitation Group”, Head of the Board of the League of the Strong, and Marianna Onufrik, an Expert of the “EUROSCOPE” Project of the NGO “ANTS”.

“Many of our defenders, who defend Ukraine in the ranks of the Armed Forces and are injured, deserve full and effective interaction in society. Therefore, it is our duty to take care of the removal of barriers to the employment of persons with disabilities right now. Ukraine should become a space of opportunities to ensure the realization of all the talents of citizens, especially those who risked losing their own lives, giving us the right to build a state”, – emphasizes the Head of the Board of the National Interests Advocacy Network “ANTS” Hanna Hopko.

The event will take place in the premises of Ukrinform. It will start on May 1 at 10:00 a.m. If you wish to participate please register here: https://forms.gle/JPGjHHnkAsTLesqq8

Anybody will be able to watch the panel discussions and submit questions to the speakers online. The event will be accompanied by sign language interpretation.

The project is financed within the framework of the MATRA Program with the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ukraine.