A meeting between the Foundation of France (Fondation de France) and Ukrainian participants in the French organization's partnership programs took place in Uzhhorod over two days. 

The Transcarpathian region was represented by the Charitable Organization "Charity Fund "Medical Aid Committee in Zakarpattya", the NGO "Transcarpathian Association of Local Development", and the team of the "Longo maї" cooperative. In total, almost 40 participants from different regions of Ukraine joined the communication platform.

At the meeting, which began with a welcome address by Michel Maietta, President of the "Solidarity with Ukraine" Program Committee, members of the participating organizations presented their programs and discussed the current areas of work that participants had been involved in over the two years since the last meeting. In a series of strategic sessions, attendees identified priorities for the future and developed a vision of the potential challenges of wartime and the groups most vulnerable to the consequences of war.

Participants also focused on how the war mobilized and promoted solidarity within Ukrainian civil society, and where it revealed its vulnerabilities. For his part, Michel Maietta conducted a workshop on economic models and financial sustainability issues in organizations in the context of a protracted crisis. It should be emphasized that the sustainability of active communities is key to the successful achievement of common goals regarding the protection of human rights, evacuation from frontline settlements, humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons, construction of shelters, and psychosocial support for the population. These and other aspects remain the focus of the Fondation de France in Ukraine.

The assistance provided by the Fondation de France to Ukraine since the beginning of the war has primarily consisted of donations from over 150,000 French citizens, whose conscious position has made dozens of socially important programs and projects possible for our country. We are grateful to each and every one of them who, despite the distance and circumstances, remain in solidarity with the Ukrainian people during the most difficult period of their lives.

"Our cooperation with the Fondation de France has always been about solutions, and after more than three years of cooperation, I can say that these solutions have been and remain effective. This includes emergency responses to the challenges of war, when the Fondation de France financed the purchase of several batches of powerful generators for social and medical institutions in Ukraine and helped to build shelters for internally displaced persons in Zakarpattia, as well as sustainable solutions in the field of mental health and psychosocial support for the population. In particular, we have jointly implemented projects to deepen the competencies of professional psychologists and provide consultations to both medical specialists and citizens from vulnerable groups. And our active contacts continue, because there is an understanding of the current situation in the country and a vision of how to respond to various requests", notes Nataliya Kabatsiy, director of CAMZ.

As a reminder, the previous Fondation de France partnership meeting in 2023 was also held in Uzhhorod. Thus, Transcarpathia remains a reliable rear during the russian-Ukrainian war, where socially important initiatives are implemented and effective communication between representatives of global civil society is developed.