On June 9, an awards ceremony for the winners of the national competition “Charitable Ukraine – 2025: Charity in Defense of Ukraine” took place in Kyiv.

The “Capable and Resistant” program took first place in the “Platform for Good” category.

In 2025, the competition received 1,698 applications across 28 categories. Participants included charitable foundations, civil society organizations, volunteer initiatives, businesses, and projects from various fields, both from across Ukraine and abroad. The award went to the “Capable and Resistant” program, which East Europe Foundation has been implementing with the support of Switzerland since 2022.

“This award is recognition of the joint work of more than 60 partner organizations that help war-affected people every day. We are proud to be able to bring this network together, strengthen its capacity, and create conditions for development and mutual support. We are grateful to Switzerland for its consistent partnership and contribution to strengthening civil society in Ukraine,” said Lesia Luchkovska, Program Manager at East Europe Foundation.

In 2025, 24 organizations received grant support under the program. They implemented projects in the areas of psychosocial, legal, humanitarian, medical, social, and economic assistance. In total, the support reached over 15,000 people.

In addition to funding, the program focuses on strengthening the organizational capacity of its partners. Teams took part in training programs and received mentoring support — in total, more than 50 hours of individual consultations and over 60 training participants in project management, adherence to humanitarian standards, safety in wartime operations, and ethical communication.

This approach allows organizations to continue working within their communities after individual initiatives are completed, and to respond effectively to new challenges amid a prolonged crisis.

We are grateful to the organizers of the competition — the Association of Charities of Ukraine — for this recognition. Special thanks go to our partners at the Embassy of Switzerland in Ukraine, as well as to the organizations participating in the program for their completed projects and the results achieved.

The “Capable and Resistant” program is implemented by East Europe Foundation with the support of Switzerland.