Coalition of Human Rights Organizations Responds to Proposal to Merge the Derzhmolodzhytlo and the Ukrfinzhytlo

The Coalition of organizations working to protect the rights of those affected by armed aggression against Ukraine, including East SOS, has released a statement on the proposed merger of Derzhmolodzhytlo (State Fund for Support of Youth Housing Construction) and Ukrfinzhytlo (Ukrainian Financial Housing Company). These are two government agencies that provide housing to citizens.

The stated goal of this reorganization is to centralize all housing programs under one agency and make it easier to manage. However, it is important to keep in mind, that such a merger could create risks for the continuity of state policy and international partnerships aimed at providing housing for vulnerable groups, including internally displaced people, veterans, and young people.

Coalition representatives point out that although Derzhmolodzhytlo and Ukrfinzhytlo are both state financial institutions operating in the housing sector, they are fundamentally different in their purpose and in the mechanisms through which state support is delivered, so they should not be seen as interchangeable.

Derzhmolodzhytlo plays a central role in the state’s social housing policy, providing preferential loans and targeted support to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), veterans, and young people. Ukrfinzhytlo, on the other hand, functions as a market-oriented financial institution based on a commercial business model.

The document points to a number of risks, including:

• potential disruptions to existing housing programs, or even their possible suspension, which could further limit access to them;
  
• delays in project approvals, as well as a loss of trust among international partners that co-finance some of these initiatives;
  
• changes to lending conditions for vulnerable groups that would reduce flexibility.

A further concern is that social programs may simply disappear in the market-oriented model. In practice, this would mean that access to housing would depend less on need and more on a person’s ability to pay and meet banking requirements, pushing many vulnerable people out of the system. At the same time, the reorganization could require considerable time and resources, putting the continuity of support at risk for those who are still waiting for assistance.

The Coalition stresses that any decision on the proposed merger must be preceded by an assessment of its impact on the rights and interests of people affected by the war, as well as consultations with international partners, civil society organizations, IDP councils, and experts.

Detailed arguments are available in the full position statement below.

To support the position, please use the link.

Signed by:

• Right to Protection Charitable Foundation
  
• NGO Civic Holding GROUP OF INFLUENCE
  
• Charity Foundation East SOS
  
• Crimean Human Rights Group
  
• ZMINA Human Rights Centre
  
• NGO Crisis Insight
  
• NGO Donbas SOS
  
• NGO KrymSOS
  
• Stabilization Support Services Charitable Foundation