The ongoing recovery efforts in Ukraine are helping restore homes and lives devastated by the conflict with Russia. Valentyna Sukhodolska, a retiree from Bucha, Ukraine, has returned to her apartment three years after it was destroyed during the Russian occupation in March 2022. She recalls entering her damaged home for the first time, describing the experience as overwhelming.
“I felt something I wouldn’t wish to anyone. The pain, the longing, it was unbearable,” Valentyna says. “When my granddaughter brought me into the flat, eager to show me everything, I fainted. I couldn’t bear the weight of it all.”
According to a Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA4), one in every ten homes in Ukraine has been damaged due to the invasion, affecting nearly 2.5 million households and resulting in over $57 billion in estimated damages. Reconstruction needs are highest in the housing sector at almost $84 billion.
Valentyna's daughter, florist Iryna Korolova, also suffered losses when her home was damaged during the invasion. “When we came back after the de-occupation, we patched the holes in the roof with our own hands: boards, plastic sheets, construction foam," she says.
Assistance arrived through eRecovery, a program launched in 2023 that is integrated into Diia, Ukraine’s e-government platform. It allows citizens to apply for compensation for property damage and receive funds directly. By mid-2025, nearly 100,000 households had received compensation funded by the World Bank-supported Housing Repair for People’s Empowerment (HOPE) Project.
Launched in August 2023, HOPE has supported nearly 100,000 households with $210 million in compensation for home repairs. The project also finances complex repairs of residential buildings across several regions including Bucha and Zaporizhzhia.
Svitlana Pavliienko from Havrylivka is among those waiting to return home after a missile hit her apartment over three years ago. Her building is now part of a HOPE-supported rehabilitation effort focusing on energy efficiency and universal accessibility.
“I always want to return home because no matter where I am, home is the best," Svitlana says.
The HOPE Project receives funding from the Ukraine Relief, Recovery, Reconstruction and Reform Trust Fund (URTF) with additional support from other programs focused on recovery efforts.