HealthRight Women Career HUB in Ukraine

Halyna Skipalska is Country Director of HealthRight International (HRI) in Ukraine, and CEO of the Ukrainian Foundation of Public Health (UFPH), HealthRight’s Ukrainian subsidiary. For more than 12 years Halyna has led HRI and UFPH in service of their shared mission to empower marginalized communities to live healthy lives through the provision of high quality health and social services, advocacy and health system strengthening. Every year, these organizations touch the lives of more than 25,000 vulnerable women, including women living with HIV, IDPs, survivors of GBV or torture, women who use drugs, and women in conflict with law. A dedicated activist and advocate, Halyna is a member of the National GBV/DV Response Council in Ukraine, and UN Women’s Civil Society Advisory Group. Halyna has dedicated her career to the belief that health is a human right, and to building a Ukraine where every woman enjoys full access to her rights.

Problem: Despite social and psychological support, GBV survivors frequently relapse into a cycle of violence and return to their abuser due to financial dependency (50% of our GBV clients from shelters return to their abusers eventually).

Solution:  A program that integrates an economic empowerment intervention comprised of online financial literacy training, financial management skills-building, and a jobs marketplace, into existing mental health and psychosocial services (MHPSS) for women survivors of GBV across Kyiv and 8 oblasts, in order to break the chain of financial dependency between women and their abusers. 

Elevation: This intervention elevates an existing remote MHPSS program that has served 25000 women per year by adding an economic empowerment intervention that breaks the chain of economic dependency, and in turn elevates Ukrainian GBV survivors, their families and their communities.

The project is designed to enhance existing services for GBV survivors by integrating professional development and economic independency programming. We see that violence repeats once a survivor returns to perpetrator so most of survivors need to gain financial independence. Examples of addressing complex financial and safety challenges include how to: disentangle joint financial relationships with an abusive partner; repair credit damaged by an abuser, or identify resources to assist with financial and safety challenges.

Financial literacy and economic empowerment programs are indeed effective in assisting survivors to improve their financial knowledge, increase their confidence about managing their financial affairs, and enhance financial behaviors that will improve their financial safety and security. Additionally, best practices in empowerment theory suggest that financial literacy programs should be offered in conjunction with comprehensive advocacy services that assist survivors regain their level of confidence and support them to take actionable steps that improve their economic situation. By proposed initiative we will elevate opportunities for women survivors of GBV, we will build awareness and driving action to solve GBV problem in Ukraine systemically, we will shift attitudes that can have a direct impact on life decisions and overall well-being of women survivors of GBV.

We will create Women Career HUB in Ukraine supporting clients of Psycho-Social Services Mobile Teams (PSS MTs), Day Centres and Shelters in deployment leveraging digital platforms and partnership with the private sector. We expect from private sector sharing job opportunities, businessmen/women (private entrepreneurs) involvement in trainings, even small investments and sponsorships (for example purchase of sewing machine or start-up support). We’ll provide three level of modules, on Financial Literacy; Financial Managemen; Skills Building; Jobs Training and Marketplace, online and offline. The Hub will be housed in our HealthRight Service Center. It will engage Career Consultants (CC) advising on vocational opportunities, private entrepreneurship, job search, etc. CCs will work directly in the HUB with clients and conduct online masterclasses for all 9 shelters and 6 day centres, MTs (for example, via ZOOM).  They will test clients on professional capabilities, priorities, assess and help to overcome personal barriers and improve confidence. Where CCs cannot directly assist with employment he/she will re-direct client to other providers. This work will be implemented in close collaboration with local business, and reflect COVID-19 quarantine business limitations. Provisional trainings/on-line webinars topics: 1) an increase in financial literacy; 2) an improvement in economic self-efficacy; 3) economic self-sufficiency.

Shelters for women GBV-survivors, especially now, when violence grows as result of COVID-19 quarantine measures, provide rehabilitation services and transitional housing for those who need safe accommodation or security of livelihood with children. It is vitally important for them to build security and life opportunities. The shelters have connections with local Day Centers for legal and psychological support services, hospitals and maternity clinics, employment centers, educational facilities, the police, registration offices and NGOs. The Women Career HUB will help the service providers to elaborate employment programmes for the clients. Women who applied for help are mainly lacking education due to early marriage, long working break (parental leave, decision of the partner, etc), living in regions with high unemployment rate. However, according to the results of special courses delivered in the centres these vulnerable women learn fast, improve understanding of their rights and responsibilities, inspired to start new life and gain new skills. They realise that normal life, without violence is possible and doable. They just need information on terms of education and training, available opportunities, including self-education, risks and specifics of employment or private entrepreneurship. They need practical support in deployment, encouragement and some follow-up to fully reintegrate into society.

Extended quarantine and physical distancing have increased vulnerability to GBV.  We intend to create a supportive space to achieve gender equality and cultivate women economic empowerment, to use COVID-19 related challenges and bring innovations to elevate opportunities for most vulnerable. The Career HUB will offer impactful solutions to support women survivors’ recovery, particularly through this global pandemic.  We want to enable a woman to learn a profession adapted to quarantine measures, staying with children at home, that can bring a stable income; to make her more secure and confident, to give her a tool to break the cycle of violence.

The concept was conceived after years of managing the HRI Service Center for Women and Girls and Halfway House in Kyiv; Centers/Shelters for women GBV survivors and PSS MTs in most of the Ukrainian regions as a Continuum model of GBV prevention. Most clients arrive as survivors and don’t see perspectives except getting back to families after recovery and some break. However, their perpetrators usually treat them unfairly and unacceptably because of deeply-routed patterns of violence and the ongoing armed conflict, which exacerbates domestic violence during the COVID-19 quarantine. Economic abuse by intimate partner is a form of domestic violence undermining the economic independence of partner. A woman is entitled to live in dignity and in freedom. Empowering women is an indispensable tool for advancing the economy and reducing poverty and uncertainty. Yet discrimination against women and girls (GBV, economic discrimination, reproductive health inequities, and harmful traditional practices) remains the most pervasive and persistent form of inequality. When a woman is a decision maker, she can plan her life and contribute to society. When she is healthy, her impact is magnified across her family, the community and improves prospects for the next generation.

As a human rights advocate, I have been working with vulnerable women and their families for more than 20 years. Since 2008, I have led two NGOs, with 14 office staff, nearly 140 staff in the field, 50 sub-contractors in Kyiv and other regions. Together, our work provides necessary client-based services in rural, urban and humanitarian settings. Our primary beneficiaries and partners have lived experiences of marginalization. Women work longer hours than men, because they spend much of the day for their job, if they have it, and also performing tasks to maintain the household, including agricultural production and selling, having no breaks and weekends to get some rest. Often, they take on paid work or entrepreneurial enterprises as well. Unpaid domestic over-work directly affects the health and overall well-being and quality of life of children and other household members. Thereof I mainstream HRI/UFPH activities towards gender equality. As professionally successful hardworking woman, wife and mother I truly want to help women in despair to overcome their problems. I thoroughly select specialists and out-sourced experts to help women-clients to regain their strength and start new life. I seek support from opinion leaders and politicians (First Leady, Ministers, Ambassadors, parliamentarians, celebrities). 

HealthRight and UFPH provide and develop services for target populations in Ukraine with the financial support of UNFPA; UNICEF, UN Women, MACAIDS Fund, UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture, and Elton John AIDS Foundation. To respond to the needs of women and girls affected by violence, in 2014 we started provision of specialized services for GBV survivors in 5 Easter regions most effected by conflict in East and Kyiv. It resulted in development of an innovative continuum model of support for GBV survivors. It was first piloted in conflict-affected regions and later extended to more than half out of 24 Ukrainian regions. All three elements of continuum model of care are interconnected and have a clear reference clients pathway. The services are linked to local state centers for social services, departments of labor, healthcare and educational facilities, the police, and city authorities constituting an effective mechanism and complex solution. In addition to direct social assistance to women, children and families in difficult living circumstances, we strengthen capacity and improve quality and effectiveness of social, psychological and medical services, which are provided by other state agencies and NGOs.

We adapt best practices, global models and rights-based approaches for our programming. Through our evidence-based training programs as part of elaborated by HRI/UFPH continuum model of care we deliver very motivating information for female audience. The final impact we target is women empowerment — taking control over their lives: setting their own agendas, gaining skills, building self-confidence, solving problems, and developing self-reliance.

HealthRight Service Center, and Halfway House for disadvantaged new mothers with children in Kyiv is my professional and personal brainchild. As a solutions driven individual, I saw the challenges for women in difficult living circumstances and dedicated my life to creating safe spaces for change.

These facilities provide residence based rehabilitation services for clients in difficult living circumstances; medical, testing, legal consultations; parental care trainings and other important counseling. Due to interruptions in charitable funding, I advocated for support of the Kyiv city authorities and in 2016 the service has become a part of the city target program ‘Children, Family, Capital for 2016-2020’. This is unique as for Ukraine achievement, but these cots covered only social workers’ salaries and the facilities often lack equipment and consumables. I personally conducted few fundraising campaigns to find sponsors to purchase: kitchen, TV, washing machines, food for clients, etc. I have opened recently the Youtube channel for social workers and volunteers who currently have to work on-line with women in difficult living circumstances during COVID-19 quarantine (self-protection, living rules in quarantine, how to work on-line, other relevant consultations and innovative micro-fundraising). I promote the facilities through my private Facebook page with 3000+ subscribers.

I see local ownership of project initiatives as the main result of project efforts. In response to consequence of the armed conflict in the Eastern Ukraine which exaggerated GBV in the country UFPH piloted a continuum model of care for GBV survivors. This model did not exist in Ukraine and we have built and applied it based of HRI/UFPH experience of Halfway House and Women Service Centre. The model made up of PSS MTs, shelters and daily centres has been introduced into the Law of Ukraine on Prevention Domestic Violence adopted in 2017 (as alternative to Istanbul Convention which was blocked by certain forces of the Ukrainian Parliament).  As member of several working groups and advisory boards on this issue I lobbied development and adoption of this Law as well as adoption by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine the special by-laws on provision of the above services by local administrations and assigned departments. When I come to the regions where HRI/UFPH projects are implemented to coordinate their activities with local authorities I always advocate for institutionalisation of our services and their introduction into local budgeting.

We propose unique for Ukraine solution, the intervention that elevates an existing remote MHPSS program that has served 25 000 women per year by adding an economic empowerment intervention that breaks the chain of economic dependency, and in turn elevates Ukrainian GBV survivors, their families and their communities.

25 000

8 000

60 000

COVID-19 measures can influence proposed intervention but it will not be barier for us yo accomplish our goals.

We will partner with other CSOs served women survivors of GBV, state social services, state employment services in comunities, IT-companies and business.

Extended quarantine and physical distancing have increased vulnerability to GBV in Ukraine.  We intend to create an innovative supportive space to achieve gender equality and cultivate women economic empowerment, to use COVID-19 related challenges and bring innovations to elevate opportunities for most vulnerable. The Career HUB will offer impactful solutions to support women survivors’ recovery, particularly through this global pandemic.  We want to enable a woman to learn a profession adapted to quarantine measures, staying with children at home, that can bring a stable income; to make her more secure and confident, to give her a tool to break the cycle of violence. All this can be achieved through partnership between state service providers , IT companies and business.