51 Women-Led Businesses in Ukraine Gain Nearly UAH 20M Funding

The government of Germany, in association with GIZ and National Development Institution (NDI) has allotted nearly UAH 20 million to 51 women entrepreneurs through the ‘Move Forward program’. The grant comes as a financial support allowing women in business development concentrating in conflict arising regions.

The project has been designed to improve the performance of women-owned micro-enterprises located in the frontline regions of Ukraine. The First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of NDI, Valeriy Maiboroda noted that since the project’s launch in May 2026, more than 500 applications have been received from women who intend to build and grow their businesses. After selecting the most credible among all these applicants, they were provided with the fund amount as well as mentorship and networking skills.

Key Highlights:

• 51 women entrepreneurs receive nearly UAH 20 million in business grants in Ukraine
• 71% of funded projects focus on improving energy resilience ahead of winter
• Oschadbank’s initiative combines grants, preferential loans and business training

Valeriy also mentioned that 71% of the projects were provided with financing concerning the need to enhance energy resilience. It should be stressed that energy availability is a key requirement for enterprises that operate in the frontline territories of Ukraine. As a result of such support, women entrepreneurs have managed to ensure winter preparations of their enterprises by purchasing energy storage devices and energy efficient technologies.

"The programme launched in May 2026. We received nearly 500 applications from women entrepreneurs in frontline regions. We selected 51 winners and provided almost UAH 20 million in funding," Valeriy announced during a presentation of the Women's Business initiative of Oschadbank, carried out in collaboration with foreign partners in Kyiv.

In addition to financial support, the selected entrepreneurs were offered individual consultations provided by NDI and Oschadbank. Such services comprised business planning assistance and other important tools required for enterprise management and growth.

"I'm glad we managed to support our women entrepreneurs ahead of winter in equipping their businesses for energy resilience, including through energy storage systems and energy-efficient equipment," Valeriy said.

As part of the wider effort to expand opportunities for women-led businesses, Oschadbank aims to grant about 2 million Euros to the women entrepreneurs, besides offering them loans and trainings. This initiative involves many international and development partners such as Prosper Global, EFSE, EBRD, DSIK from Germany, along with the Move Forward program. The latter offers grants and consulting to micro-enterprises.

The information given above was provided by the Deputy Chairman during the Oschadbank's Women's Business project presentation, initiated jointly with foreign companies. This presentation was held in Kyiv at the OschadBusiness Hub.