Just Transition

It's not just about abandoning coal

First of all, it's about equal opportunities, involving all stakeholders and vulnerable groups in collective actions, providing specialized workers with opportunities for retraining and finding new employment. It's also about reducing human impact on the environment, thus fair transformation is an integral part of climate policy.

Support of international organizations

Where does coal mining take place in Ukraine?

Coal mining takes place in 5 regions in Ukraine - Donetsk, Luhansk, Dnipropetrovsk, Volyn, and Lviv regions.

Most often, these are specialized settlements known as "monotowns" where life and economy are centered around mines.

The impact of war

Since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine, many mines have been shut down, destroyed, and even flooded.

As of July 2022, at least 10 flooded mines are known, which not only remain inactive but also pollute the environment.

Therefore, it`s important to have a strategy for green recovery of the territories and the reorientation of the local economy today. Furthermore, the need to close mines is reinforced by Ukraine's aspiration for EU membership and the decarbonization of the economy — reducing its impact on the climate.

Analysis of the causes of the problem and justification of the need to solve it:

• Low level of investment attractiveness and practical absence of economic diversification in coal regions;
• Loss-making state-owned enterprises in the coal industry;
• Ineffective state policy in the areas of employment, education, healthcare, and culture in coal regions;
• Underdeveloped social and critical infrastructure in settlements within coal regions;
• Deterioration of the ecological situation due to the operation and/or closure of coal enterprises;
• Social tension among the population residing in areas where coal enterprises are undergoing liquidation, conservation or reorientation to other types of economic activities.

"People who work in mines should understand where they will work, how the social sphere will develop in cities where mines are currently city-forming enterprises." - Denys Shmyhal, Prime Minister of Ukraine.

Just Transition will promote:

• Creating conditions for economic diversification in over 20 coal communities, where approximately 850,000 people reside (including 110,000 school and preschool-aged children);
• Increasing the number of employed population in the real sector of the economy unrelated to the coal industry (creating new jobs and increasing self-employment among the population);
• Reducing disparities in the development of coal territories, which affects the situation in regions and quality of life;
• Increasing residents' satisfaction in coal cities with heating services, water supply, and water quality;
• Renewing infrastructure facilities in coal communities through the utilization of efficient funding sources and mechanisms within the resource allocation of the Program (covering over 60 settlements);
• Expanding opportunities for professional self-realization of coal enterprise employees through the implementation of special retraining programs.

"Liquidation of mines is not a verdict but an opportunity to create a new economy",- Andriy Tabinskyy, Head of the Association of Coal Communities of Ukraine.

In many European countries, a model of regional development has long been implemented, which involves transitioning to "green energy", achieving a high standard of living, and providing good prospects for residents of coal communities.

With the help of a just transition coal communities in various countries not only smoothly endured the process of phasing out coal mining but also received incentives for development and even managed to fundamentally rebuild their economies.