Bila Tserkva Housing Strategy: Findings of a Socio-demographic Study of Internally Displaced Persons Presented

Together with its partners, IWO held a working meeting in Bila Tserkva dedicated to developing a local housing strategy as part of the project “Strengthening of Urban Resilience in the Areas of Supply Infrastructure and Housing” (SUR).

The project is part of German transitional development assistance, commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.

The event brought together representatives of relevant departments of the Bila Tserkva City Council, representatives of the Council on Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), heads of local homeowners’ associations, and project experts. The working group on developing the housing strategy is led by Deputy Mayors Alona Kolotnytska and Vasyl Morskyi.

Work on the document is ongoing against the backdrop of a comprehensive housing policy reform in accordance with Ukraine’s commitments under the Ukraine Facility Plan, which includes the adoption of the National Housing Strategy. In this context, local housing strategies must be aligned with national priorities while also addressing local specificities, needs, and capabilities. By participating in the SUR project, cities receive support for these transformations.

During the working meeting, the experts presented:

• the legislative framework and structure of the local housing strategy: Nataliia Korotchenko, housing policy expert at IWO e.V., and Yuliia Popova, project manager and analyst at IWO e.V., presented a practical model for developing a strategy, using the work carried out for the Zhytomyr City Territorial Community as an example;
• a socio-demographic study of IDPs in Bila Tserkva: Svitlana Mashtak, senior sociologist at the research company “Operatyvna Sotsiolohiia” LLC, presented the results of a study commissioned by GIZ, which identifies socio-demographic changes in Bila Tserkva linked to internal displacement, the demographic structure of IDPs, the characteristics of their housing situation and needs, their level of integration into the community, the effectiveness of existing support programmes, and other key aspects.

The study revealed distinct characteristics specific to Bila Tserkva: a high proportion of the displaced population consists of people of working age and professionals with higher education. The relocation of businesses, together with their employees, has had a significant impact on local dynamics, directly affecting demand and price trends in the property rental and purchase markets. Members of the IDP Council supplemented the quantitative data with their own assessment of the challenges faced by displaced persons in the community.

The data collected will form the basis for developing a housing strategy for Bila Tserkva. It will help substantiate and quantify the need for social housing, as well as guide the planning of investments required to meet local housing demand.

IWO would like to express sincere thanks to the Bila Tserkva community, experts, and partners for their openness to dialogue and constructive cooperation towards the sustainable development of Ukraine’s housing sector.

A video report on the event can be found in the press release from the Bila Tserkva City Council: https://bc-rada.gov.ua/node/17765