How Ukrainians cope with war – Euractiv

The brutal war has lasted for more than 800 days, and Ukrainians have experienced unimaginable destruction, displacement, and desolation. However, the determination of Ukrainian families, the actions of the Ukrainian government, and the support of Ukraine’s partners have helped alleviate this disaster and slow the slide into poverty.

Arup Banerjee is the World Bank’s Country Director for Eastern Europe (including Ukraine) Region.

This is confirmed in the World Bank’s recently released report assessing living standards in Ukraine, titled “Listen to Ukraine’s voice” Based on an ongoing monthly telephone survey conducted since April 2023 among 1,500 to 2,000 representative households in Ukraine.

The analysis found that Ukrainians showed resilience in the face of economic adversity, alleviated poverty by relying on other family members and the government, and began to readjust to their new reality.

Elasticity

Due to the war, poverty rates in Ukraine have risen sharply – GDP fell by almost 30% in 2022. Currently, three out of ten Ukrainians live in poverty – Ukraine currently has 1.8 million more people living in poverty than in 2020.

The situation is grim. Nearly two-thirds of households report that they are in a worse economic situation than before the war, and 62% have neither savings nor earned income. Disruption, property losses, and economic insecurity have also affected mental health. Only a third of respondents rated their mental health as good or better, and about one in six Ukrainians consistently reported poor mental health.

Ukrainian households have shown resilience in coping with these deprivations. Faced with no money to buy food, a third of households surveyed said they were eating fewer types of food, a fifth had to eat less, and a tenth skipped meals altogether. But as food prices stopped rising, food insecurity among Ukrainian households eased by the end of 2023—falling by half from its peak in June 2023 to about 11% by January.

Ukrainians’ resilience is aided by widespread health care. About 90% of medical clinics remain operational, even in hostile areas. Households are very satisfied with the quality of care they receive. Only 4% of people consider health care services unsatisfactory, an enviable proportion for most countries.

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Many Ukrainian families rely on family members and government benefits to cope. Social benefits, including social assistance and pensions, help cushion the blow of job loss and financial loss. Benefits are shared among family members. Almost two-thirds of families who lost their jobs also had someone receiving a pension; one-third of families with financial losses received social assistance.

The government played a crucial role in maintaining social transfers. Despite the ongoing fighting, pension payments were made without interruption throughout 2023. For social assistance, more than 85% of recipients in any given month said their benefits were paid on time. For benefits to internally displaced persons, the corresponding figure was 91%, including in conflict-affected areas. The government ensured that the value of these benefits kept pace with surging inflation in 2023, which also contributed to their poverty-reducing effect.

Pensions are particularly important for the poor because they account for 60% of the income of the poorest households, while the richest 30% of households receive just a quarter.

Adjustment

The biggest adjustment facing many Ukrainian families is employment, which has fallen as economic conditions have worsened. About one-fifth of the employed population lost their jobs before the war—employed adults accounted for about 40% of the labor force in 2023, compared with 51% before the war. The poorest were once again hit hardest, with nearly a third of them out of work.

Ukrainian women are the focus of adjustment because they have mostly kept their jobs. In 2023, about two-fifths of Ukrainians (both women and men) are employed. But the employment rate for men is down by more than a quarter from pre-war levels, while the decline for women is much smaller. As the economy recovers from its trough in 2022, those who have kept their jobs benefit from rising wages in 2023. Between the second and last quarters of 2023, per capita wage income for households increased by about 25% in real terms, helping those households with wage earners to adjust further.

Some Ukrainians who left their homes also returned. Return was strongly associated with whether they could find work again – returnees were most likely to report being employed and actively working in the past week. In contrast, only 17% of displaced people were actively working.

Ukrainian families have also adjusted by adapting the way their children are educated. As the government continues to pay teachers’ salaries regularly, 99% of school children received lessons in the last quarter of 2023. But in war-torn areas, teaching is done differently – 72% of school children in war-torn areas receive remote teaching, compared to only 7% in other areas.

support

Ukraine also provided an enviable public service during the war, which strengthened the resilience of families. In particular, regular and adequate pension payments, although only for the elderly, supported the income of the entire family. The same is true for social assistance and internally displaced persons’ benefits, which played a major role in protecting families from poverty. Ukraine’s ability to keep public services running by paying civil servants, teachers and medical workers regularly and using digital payment methods is unique.

In addition to the courage, creativity, and dedication of the Ukrainian government, partners have also played a huge role. The United States, Japan, and European countries have generously provided funding for government operations (including through The World Bank’s PEACE Project) is a key factor in alleviating poverty. As Ukraine enters its third year of war, these findings highlight what needs to be done to continue protecting the well-being of Ukrainian families.