The second international meeting of the Civil Protection Shelter Coalition for Ukraine took place in Ukraine, organized by the Ministry of Internal Affairs together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
The event was attended by First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal, Deputy Minister of Health of Ukraine Hennadii Nersesian, Ambassador of the Republic of Finland to Ukraine Tarja Fernández, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, and the diplomatic corps.
In total, more than 60 international participants from 40 countries, as well as representatives of 14 international organizations, joined the meeting.
Participants discussed the expansion of the Coalition, attracting additional international support, and implementing joint projects for the construction and modernization of shelters. Special attention was paid to Ukraine’s current needs, in particular the development of a network of protective structures and the introduction of mobile shelters, which will help expand civil protection capabilities and improve the safety of the population.
An important part of the meeting was devoted to the security of healthcare facilities. In particular, Deputy Minister of Health of Ukraine Hennadii Nersesian presented the results of shelter arrangement, the current needs of the sector, and measures to strengthen the protection of healthcare facilities ahead of the autumn-winter period.
Funding for relevant infrastructure projects is currently ongoing. In particular, in 2024–2026, 78 projects involving the arrangement of shelters in healthcare facilities are being implemented in line with the priorities of the Ministry of Health.
At the same time, amid constant security threats, solutions that can be implemented in a short time are of particular importance. One of them is primary (mobile) shelters, which can be installed much faster than stationary protective structures.
According to a preliminary assessment, the sector’s total need is 669 mobile shelters, of which 417 are needed as a priority. This primarily concerns hospitals in frontline and border regions, facilities providing emergency and specialized care, as well as healthcare facilities that have no shelters or whose shelter capacity is insufficient.
Importantly, work on implementing such solutions is already underway. In particular, the Coalition’s Supervisory Group decided to allocate the available financial resources to the procurement of mobile shelters. This will make it possible to strengthen the protection of the population in a shorter time, in parallel with the development of a stationary network of protective structures.
At the same time, with the support of the Coalition, priority projects for the healthcare system with a total value of UAH 275 million have been selected.
In total, 136 projects for the arrangement of shelters in healthcare facilities with completed design and cost estimate documentation have already been entered into the DREAM public investment management system.
The Ministry of Health continues to strengthen the security of healthcare facilities so that they can provide uninterrupted care to patients even in the face of security threats.
The Civil Protection Shelter Coalition for Ukraine was launched in May 2025 in partnership with Team Europe countries. Its first meeting took place on 27 November 2025. The initiative brings together international partners to develop a network of protective structures and strengthen the safety of the civilian population.
As part of this work, funding is being attracted for the modernization of existing shelters and the construction of new ones. The main financial instrument is the EU’s Ukraine Facility programme, while international partners can also join the implementation of projects through other mechanisms.
Source: https://www.kmu.gov.ua
