Ireland funding construction of 50 modular homes in Ukraine
Plenty of money for Ukrainians but none for the 14,000 homeless Irish.
Ireland has provided €1.5 million to the agency for the construction of 50 units.
Ireland is funding the construction of 50 modular homes in Kyiv as part of its stabilisation and humanitarian support for Ukraine - which has cost €130 million since the outbreak of the war with Russia in 2022.
The project is being overseen by the UN Refugee Agency and plans to provide 300 prefab homes in the country as a medium-term solution to the emergency housing crisis caused by the conflict. The modular homes include kitchens, furniture, toilets, bathrooms and appliances and 135 of the buildings have been completed to date. Ireland has provided €1.5 million to the agency for the construction of 50 units.
Last week, the Government announced a funding package worth €36 million for Ukraine and its neighbouring countries for humanitarian assistance, reconstruction and rehabilitation works. It brought Ireland’s total contribution towards stabilisation and support to €130 million, of which €40 million was allocated this year alone, according to figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Ireland has also contributed significantly by accommodating refugees from Ukraine, spending over €640 million last year through the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS). Responding to a parliamentary question on Ireland’s contribution to Ukraine’s recovery efforts this week, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said the Government had provided support at the earliest opportunity.
“Approximately one-third of Ukrainians have been forced to flee their homes and around 3.7 million are currently displaced within the country,” he stated. “Ireland funds UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency in Ukraine, to provide emergency shelter and access to medium-term housing solutions as part of short-term recovery efforts. In 2023, with support from Ireland and other donors, UNHCR provided emergency shelter kits to 172,000 people, repaired the homes of 22,000 families, and over 40,800 displaced people benefitted from different forms of support.
“Ireland will continue to identify community infrastructure which we can help to rehabilitate, to ensure that the most vulnerable continue to have access to the essential services they need, and with a view to strengthening Ukrainian systems and enabling longer-term development by partnering with counterparts in Lithuania who have significant experience of reconstruction in Ukraine.”