Finland supports school reform and energy efficiency in Ukraine

Finland has supported Ukraine for several years. Currently, the cooperation focuses on the school system reform and on energy efficiency.

Ukrainian students. Photo: NEFCO/Patrik Rastenberger.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has opened a website on Finland's development cooperation in Ukraine to report on the work done in Ukraine and to present Finland's Strategy for Development Cooperation in Ukraine.

Finland has increased its support to Ukraine following the conflict in Eastern Ukraine that started in 2014. The support is needed because of the worsened political, economic and humanitarian situation. In 2014–2018, Finland's support amounted to nearly EUR 40 million.

Finland's support has been directed mainly to the school system reform and to energy efficiency projects. In its school system reform, Ukraine concentrates on the comprehensive school system (New Ukrainian School). Finland can offer its internationally recognised, highly advanced expertise in these fields.

"In education, Finland is a real superpower, which is why we are happy to be able to export our expertise also to Ukraine. Ukraine's school reform aims, above all, at improving the quality of teaching and learning," says Jukka Tulivuori, Special Adviser on Education at the Embassy of Finland in Kiev.

In 2019, Tulivuori will start a blog in the Kehityksentekijät blog series, in which he will, in a down-to-earth manner, keep readers up to date on what is happening in the Ukrainian school reform.

"The Finland-Ukraine Trust Fund for Energy Efficiency was set up in cooperation with the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO) in 2017. Projects supported through the Fund aim to increase the use of renewable energy and the recovery of waste for sources of energy, to develop bioenergy logistics, and to make use of clean production and smart energy solutions," says Juhani Toivonen, Senior Adviser for development cooperation in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

In 2018–2021, Finland will fund both the New Ukrainian School and the Trust Fund for Energy Efficiency by EUR six million each. In addition, Finland is prepared to continue the funding of the Council of Europe's programme in Ukraine during Finland's EU Presidency in 2019.

Finland will continue to send observers to the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission and to deploy experts to the European Union Advisory Mission (EUAM) and the EU Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine (EUBAM). Finland supports Ukraine also through projects carried out by civil society organisations, and by participating in NATO partnership projects and in mine clearing.

Inquiries: Jukka Tulivuori, Special Adviser on Education, Finnish Embassy in Kiev, tel. +380 50 419 9933 and Juhani Toivonen,  Senior Adviser for development cooperation, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 29 535 0898; and Helena Lähteenmäki, Senior Investment Manager, NEFCO, tel. +358 10 618 0633.

The Foreign Ministry’s email addresses are in the format firstname.lastname@formin.fi.