Coalition member story: how CF «Ekta Initiative» won state funding for social support of servicemembers and their families despite bureaucracy

The charitable organization «Ekta Initiative» Charitable Foundation, led by Nadiya Slukhai, is delivering a critical mission across Kyiv Oblast. The foundation provides comprehensive social-support, information and consultation services for active-duty servicemembers directly at military units, as well as for their family members. The initiative is a direct response to the acute need of Ukraine's defenders for professional support.

This was made possible when the organization joined a large-scale governmental pilot project. The path to funding ran through a competitive application, a strict selection process, and the signing of an official contract. The funding amount is UAH 250,000 per month.

To compete, the team prepared the following documentation package:

• An extract from the Register of Social-Service Providers;
• The organization's statutory documents;
• A detailed description of each social service;
• Documents confirming the qualifications of staff;
• An official confirmation of the organization's overall capacity to deliver a project of this scale.

The full processing and approval cycle took almost half a year, which demanded significant resources from the foundation.

The main drivers of success that carried them through every selection stage were the team's ironclad persistence and its high professional competence. The team had a clear command of the standards of practice and proved its capacity to deliver quality services in an area where civilian structures often lack experience.

Challenges: bureaucracy and fiscal inspections instead of support

Implementing the pilot project came with serious challenges at multiple levels. Chief among them was bureaucracy: the entire process was accompanied by huge volumes of paperwork and drawn-out administrative procedures.

According to the organization's representatives, the team also faced unwillingness to cooperate on the part of rank-and-file specialists in local government bodies. The resulting information vacuum significantly slowed and complicated the work of building effective collaboration.

We also encountered a distortion of the very meaning of oversight. Staff of the National Social Service — who by regulation should have carried out supportive monitoring and helped the organization — instead showed up with strict fiscal inspections.

Result: servicemembers and families received qualified support

Despite all the challenges, this project became an important bridge of support for servicemembers and their families. Personnel at units, and their loved ones, received qualified social accompaniment, protection of their rights, and help in resolving complex social issues. At the same time, the «Ekta Initiative» team acquired unique practical experience of delivering specialised social services under the specific conditions of wartime and substantially strengthened the professional competencies of its specialists.

Within the project, an effective model of support for servicemembers and their families was developed, one that demonstrated its practical value. After the project funding ended, the foundation — recognising the importance of continuous care — continued to deliver a part of its services to servicemembers and their families on a volunteer basis.

The foundation's specialists continue to work directly with military units in Kyiv Oblast. Consultations on social payments, statuses and state guarantees, as well as psychological accompaniment for servicemembers and their families, are ongoing — confirming the organization's consistent commitment to its mission and its pursuit of continuity of support for those who need it most.

The «Ekta Initiative» case shows the important role of the civic sector in supporting servicemembers and their families, especially in wartime. The experience confirmed that partnership, professional expertise and flexibility in responding to people's needs make it possible to build effective models of social support. It also demonstrated that quality care for the military is grounded in professionalism, responsibility and respect for human dignity — and that the practices developed can become the basis for further development of Ukraine's social-services system.

A call to peers

Fear nothing! You absolutely can do this. You already know and can do a great deal. Bureaucracy can be overcome by persistence, and your professionalism is the best defence against any biased inspection. Move forward for the sake of those who defend us.

Learn more about the foundation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/698443368236451/