Out of 126,000 displaced people in Mykolaiv Oblast, payments were extended to only 33,000 in 2024

Mykolaiv, April 8, 2024, photo NikVesti

Out of more than 126,000 internally displaced persons living in Mykolaiv region, only 33,000 citizens will continue to receive payments in 2024.

Oksana Yelchiieva, director of the social protection department of the Mykolayiv RMA, told about this during the briefing, NikVesti reports.

The official explained that payments were extended only to those who meet the requirements approved by the relevant resolution.

In particular, in the Mykolayiv region, 22,000 people were extended the payment of funds, and even more than 11,000 people began to receive funds, according to the submitted applications. Assistance was automatically extended to pensioners, foster parents and adoptive parents.

«We receive many appeals regarding the extension of payments. These payments are temporary, they are assigned for 6 months if the person falls under a certain list of requirements. Assistance was automatically extended for pensioners whose pension did not exceed 9,444 hryvnias as of January 1, persons with disabilities of groups 1 and 2, children with disabilities under the age of 18, and orphans. In March, payments were automatically extended to more than 22,000 people for 6 months. Assistance was also assigned to 11,385 people based on applications. During 2024, such housing assistance was received for 851.7 million hryvnias,» Oksana Yelchiieva said.

Another inconsistency in the requirements for continuation of payments was that the average monthly income of most of them exceeded 9,444 hryvnias.

«There were many appeals from families where a husband or wife performs combat tasks on the front line, where incomes exceeded the appropriate amount. Therefore, if such a family provides a certificate that the serviceman performs tasks for the protection of the state, such incomes are not taken into account,» she explained.

She noted that since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the number of people with the status of internally displaced persons in the Mykolaiv region has increased 15 times.

«Today, in total, there are more than 126,000 internally displaced persons in the territory of the region. During the full-scale war, more than 160,000 displaced people passed through the Mykolaiv region. For comparison, before the invasion, we had 8,351 people. That is, the number of internally displaced persons has increased almost 15 times,» the official said.

In particular, Oksana Yelchiieva also said that the provision of humanitarian aid in Mykolayiv Oblast is taking a back seat. At the same time, people are offered places for employment and attracting grants to start their own business.

«There are many measures to support IDPs. This includes monetary assistance, provision of a place to live, and support from international partners. Humanitarian aid is relegated to a different plan, we are talking about employment, receiving grants from the state through Employment Centers and partners,» she added.

Settlers in Mykolaiv Oblast

It was previously reported that internally displaced persons living in rented housing in Mykolaiv will be able to receive financial assistance.

As of February 2024, there are more than 129,000 displaced people in the Mykolaiv region. According to Oksana Yelchiieva, director of the Department of Social Protection of the Population of Mykolaiv Oblast, out of 129 thousand, there are more than 74 thousand women, 34 thousand children, 10 thousand elderly people and five thousand people with special needs.

In December 2023 , the construction of 26 houses for displaced persons was announced in the city of Pervomaisk. Funds for this will be raised from international donors. Also, a center for the accommodation of IDPs will be set up in the building of a destroyed hospital in the village of Shevchenkove.

In February, it was reported that in one district of Mykolaiv, a dormitory is being renovated, where internally displaced persons will be accommodated. When it will be ready for settlement and how it can be done, NikVesti told in more detail.

The day before, in September 2023, the Minister of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories, Iryna Vereshchuk, said that almost 180,000 IDPs receive financial assistance by mistake. Among them was also a resident of Pervomaisk, who was found guilty in February 2024.