Understanding the role of Ukrainian civil society in the provision of humanitarian cash assistance
Local organisations are the principal providers of humanitarian aid in Ukraine. Localisation is also a key policy priority for donors and cash actors in the humanitarian response. However, the majority of cash assistance programmes continue to be shaped by international organisations, with only 3.4% of funding for this type of assistance being managed by local organisations in 2024. Together with our partners from Open Space Works Ukraine (OSWU), we set out to understand the barriers and opportunities for a more locally led cash response in Ukraine.
Image credit : People in Need, 2024 - photographer Alberto Lores.
Between October 2024 and March 2025, we conducted a series of in-depth interviews with key stakeholders involved in cash assistance in Ukraine. These included representatives from local civil society organisations (CSOs), international NGOs and UN agencies, coordination bodies, local authorities, and donors. We asked them about the challenges they see – but also about good practices for localising institutional cash assistance (meaning, enhancing the role of local actors within the international, institutionalised cash system) and for empowering locally led cash responses in Ukraine.
“In reality, we implement a project that the donor [international NGOs or UN agencies] designs. From the start, we are given the rules of the game – which communities, which region, which district, and how many beneficiaries we must serve.”
At a workshop in Kyiv in February 2025, we discussed the findings with key actors and developed actionable recommendations to break down the barriers to local leadership at the global, national, and local levels of the humanitarian response.
Our conclusion is clear: localisation is a political, not a technical challenge. There are no more excuses for delaying the shift toward locally led cash assistance in Ukraine.
This work was made possible thanks to funding from the STAAR – Social Protection Technical Assistance, Advice and Resources facility, implemented by DAI Global UK Ltd and funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Donors
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
