Strengthening Education and Recovery in Kharkiv Region: Polaris Expands Partnerships
The Polaris Programme, implemented by SALAR International, has taken further steps to support recovery and development in Kharkiv Oblast through new agreements that highlight the importance of education, resilience, and local governance.
On 8 September 2025, during the Polaris Programme leadership’s visit to Kharkiv Oblast, Polaris announced a new educational partnership with Valky Hromada. This cooperation focuses on modernizing the local education system, strengthening the school network, and engaging local stakeholders in shaping the future of education. For Valky, where more than two thousand children rely on quality schooling, the agreement underscores the community’s determination to prioritize education despite wartime challenges.
“We understand the importance of a quality education process” said Mayor Valerii Skrypnichenko.
Polaris Team Lead Susanna Dellans praised Valky’s leadership,
“Polaris supports hromadas that strive to advance education despite the challenging wartime circumstances. Valky hromada is an example of how local efforts can lay the foundation for a resilient education system. Sweden is ready to support this path with expertise and partnership.”
The initiative is part of a broader Polaris effort that already involves 22 hromadas, assisting their efforts to strengthen quality school networks and implement the reform of upper secondary school — one of the key elements in modernising Ukrainian education.
The following day, 9 September 2025, Polaris signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration. This agreement provides for the implementation of a number of initiatives aimed at supporting community recovery, improving public service delivery, and strengthening local capacities.
Deputy Head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration Yevhen Ivanov emphasized that the partnership will help accelerate regional recovery. For Polaris, this collaboration reflects Kharkiv’s ability to lead even under difficult security conditions.
“Together we will focus on community recovery, effective governance, accessible services, and support for education development — based on data, dialogue, and a long-term vision of growth,” Dellans said, reinforcing Polaris’s vision of systemic, sustainable support.
During the working visit, the Polaris delegation also met with its partner hromadas in the oblast — Valky, Zlatopil, and Blyzniuky — and additionally held a meeting with Chuhuiv hromada, further strengthening ties at both community and regional levels.
Susanna Dellans, Team Leader Polaris, and Yevhen Ivanov, Deputy Head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration
Together, these initiatives demonstrate how international support and local commitment can come together to safeguard education, rebuild services, and lay the foundations for resilient recovery in one of Ukraine’s hardest-hit regions.