Type of territory: de-occupied
Population: 39,766, including 5,468 internally displaced people
Area of municipality: 1297.45 km2
Priority project:
Reconstruction of wastewater treatment facilities, Balakliya city, Izium district, Kharkiv region
Additional peculiarities of the municipality:
Balakliia municipality was founded in 2020. It consists of 14 starosta districts and 37 localities. The administrative centre is Balakliia. The municipality is a part of Izium district, Kharkiv region.
Following the military aggression of the russian federation against Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022, 8 starosta districts of the municipality and Balakliia itself were under occupation, and the other 6 were in the zone of active hostilities. Balakliia was under occupation for more than half a year – frоm 2 March till 8 September 2022. As a result of airstrikes, rocket and artillery attacks by the occupying forces, some critical infrastructure objects, educational, cultural, medical institutions, municipal and privately owned residential buildings, and road and bridge infrastructure were significantly damaged and destroyed in the territory of the municipality. All this time, the russian invaders were looting the property of enterprises, institutions and organisations of our municipality, destroying critical infrastructure; the car fleet was completely destroyed, all bridges were blown up, the base hospital, power transmission lines, gas and water supply were damaged.
All 254 apartment buildings (out of 254) suffered various degrees of damage. In the private housing stock of the municipality, 3,944 houses (out of 14,957) were damaged. All 5 dormitories (out of 5), 17 institutions of general secondary education (out of 19), 7 kindergartens (out of 8), 2 after-school educational institutions (out of 3) were damaged as well. 13 structural subdivisions of Balakliia primary health care centre (out of 23) were damaged, as well as the hospital and the polyclinic department of the hospital. 18 club facilities (out of 20), 13 library branches (out of 19) were damaged too.
Before the hostilities, the population of the municipality was 42,115 people, and almost half of the population was forced to leave their homes and move to safer places. After de-occupation, the population is gradually returning. Currently more than 30,000 people actually live there.
The budget of Balakliia municipality is only capable of partially financing measures to restore the municipality’s territory and eliminate a small part of the existing destruction (there was a 50% decrease in income). About 60% of agricultural area is being unused due to contamination by explosive objects. It is completely impossible to restore the municipality without the involvement of private and international investments.
Balakliia municipality is very powerful and open to cooperation with international partners, because only with joint efforts we will be able to restore the municipality as soon as possible after occupation, and we will return people, create new jobs, and restore the work of the main industrial budget-generating enterprises. The reconstruction of infrastructure and the creation of a favourable environment in the labour market can serve as a way to restore stopped enterprises or start a new business, which will have a positive effect on the population return to a permanent place of residence.
The Balakliia City Military Administration has concluded more than 30 Memoranda, protocols, agreements on cooperation with donor organisations – UNICEF, IOM, UNDP, GLOBAL COMMUNITIES, USAID DOBRE Program executor, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDS), Swedish Agency for International Development (SIDA), U-LEAD with Europe, Charitable Organization Charitable Fund, “Premiere Urgence Internationale (CF PUI)”, Save the Children International (SCI), Charitable Organization International “Charitable Fund SAVED (ICF SAVED)”, International Committee of the Red Cross, Company Tetra Tech ES, Inc., NGO “Centre for Society Research” (Cedos), Medair branch in Ukraine, etc. Applications for participation in various competitions are constantly filled by Balakliia City Council, most of them have been successful.
Contact: Mr Vitalii Karabanov, Head of Balakliia City Military Administration, balgorsvet@ukr.net
