Direct Aid Program (DAP)
Australia’s Direct Aid Program (DAP) is a flexible, small-grants scheme that supports development activities in approximately 45 countries. Funding is available on a not-for-profit basis to individuals, community groups, NGOs, and other entities engaged in development activities.
DAP in Moldova and Ukraine 2020-2021
In 2020-21, the Australian Embassy supported the following DAP projects in Moldova and Ukraine.
EcoREactive 2.0 (Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, Transcarpathian regions)
Mountain rescue centre (NGO)
The project promotes nature preservation and conservation by equipping a workshop to recycle collected plastic that is then turned into outdoor benches. These benches are then located at public recreation areas. Project funds cover the purchase of the press for sorted wastes, milling machine, and tools for picking up litter, as well as promotional material to encourage recycling and discourage littering.
See the sounds (throughout Ukraine)
'Unmute' (charitable organisation)
This project supports school students with hearing disabilities by providing PPE shields for the teachers in specialised facilities to ensure that students receive comprehensive information supplemented with lip-reading. Project funds covered the purchase and distribution of transparent shields, and issuing a creative poster with the Ukrainian dactyl alphabet. In order to support the children and encourage healthy lifestyle and personal development the project also funded the purchase of a table tennis ball cannon and sewing machines for training and rehabilitation facilities.
Support in the protection of the hearing impaired in the Republic of Moldova in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic (throughout Moldova)
Aliance INFONET
This project (the first-ever DAP project administered by the Australian Embassy in Ukraine), provides to people with hearing disabilities PPE to guard against COVID-19, including face masks with transparent windows to aid lip-reading. Project funds covered production and distribution of masks for lip-reading, as well as protective visors for teachers.
Strengthening the capacities of health facilities to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ukraine (Dnipropetrovsk, Volyn, Lviv, Donetsk and Luhansk regions)
Ukrainian Red Cross Society
The project funded the provision of PPE (reusable medical protective suit, protective glasses and respirators) to core district-level hospitals involved in the COVID-19 response.
The strengthening of educational and rehabilitation capacities in Kremechuk baby orphanage and Znamyanka orphanage for children with disabilities (Poltava and Kirovohrad regions)
Step Forward Charity Fund
The project strengthened education and rehabilitation capacities of the facilities for children with disabilities. Project funds purchased additional equipment for Montessori Therapy Centre and Life and Self Skills Training Centre.
Support of medical facilities in Ukraine in response to the COVID-19 pandemic (various regions of Ukraine)
Ukrainian Red Cross Society
This project funds purchase of fifteen oxygen concentrators (portable, 10 litre units that support two patients at a time) for district-level hospitals treating COVID-19 in Ukraine. The project will have lasting effects not only during pandemic, as the oxygen concentrators can be used to treat other diseases that require oxygen treatment.
DAP in Ukraine 2019-2020
In 2019-20, the Australian Embassy supported the following DAP projects.
Repair of women’s shelter (Cherkasy region)
Positive Women Cherkasy (charitable organisation)
The Embassy funded the repair of the premises and purchase of equipment for a shelter for women affected by domestic violence in Cherkasy region.
Purchase of physiotherapy equipment for war veterans (Chernihiv region)
Chernihiv Regional Centre for Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Care for War Veterans and their Families and the Families of Fallen Soldiers
The equipment is used to treat muscular hypertension, chronic fatigue, the swelling of tissues as a result of physical exertion as well as muscular conditions arising from immobility. Ten veterans are expected to receive treatments per month.
Strengthening the capacity of health facilities for the COVID-19 response (Dnipropetrovsk, Volyn, Lviv, Donetsk and Luhansk regions)
Ukrainian Red Cross Society
The project aims to provide PPE for medical staff in five regions, which includes reusable medical protective suits, protective glasses and respirators. The project covers core COVID-19 response hospitals at the district level.
DAP in Ukraine 2018-2019
In 2018-19, the Australian Embassy supported the following DAP projects.
Assistance to homeless people (Kyiv, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Odesa)
Community Of Sant’Egidio
This project assisted homeless people to have access to crucial information about services, food and shelters through the production of a printed directory. The directory was distributed to homeless people in Kyiv who do not have access to phones or internet. Additionally, under this project hot meals were provided to groups of homeless people in four cities as well as in Kyiv.
Establishment of a Montessori Therapy Centre for children with disabilities at Kremenchuk orphanage (Kremenchuk, Poltava Region)
Step Forward Charity Fund
Under this project we helped establish a Montessori Therapy Centre for orphaned children with disabilities (aged 0-6). The fully equipped Centre provides effective rehabilitation and education services.
FemGeneration (Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi and Ternopil regions)
All-Ukrainian Charitable Organization CONVICTUS UKRAINE
This project aimed to promote equal opportunities for girls and women from remote rural and mountain areas. Convictus conducted a number of workshops for rural women with the participation of psychologists, gender and reproductive health experts, and employment experts. As a follow up, women leaders visited social enterprises in Lviv in order to connect with existing businesses.
Provision of sport equipment to support sport rehabilitation of wounded active-duty servicemen and veterans (Bila Tserkva, Odesa and Lutsk)
STRATCOM UA (charitable organization)
This project supported the development of the physical and sports-based rehabilitation programs for wounded military personnel in Bila Tserkva, Odesa and Lutsk. Under this project we purchased sports equipment needed for rehabilitation under the Invictus Games program in Ukraine as well as other sport rehabiliation programs.
Pre-school preparation for Roma children (Rativtsi village, Zakarpattya region)
Transcarpathian regional charitable foundation Blago
With Australian funding, 25 Roma children from the village of Rativtsi, Uzhgorod district, Zakarpattya region, received assistance to prepare for school. As the children did not attend preschool, it was difficult for them to integrate into school life and society. The project developed educational and communication skills.
Humanitarian assistance in the military conflict area in Luhansk and Donetsk regions (Luhansk and Donetsk regions)
Vostok-SOS (charity foundation)
This provided targeted humanitarian aid (food packages, hygiene kits, medication) for residents of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in settlements close to the conflict line.
Assisting the rehabilitation of homeless people at the Chernihiv Centre for Social Adaptation of Homeless and Street people (Chernihiv region)
Chernihiv Centre for Social Adaptation of Homeless and Street people (NGO)
This project helped renovate the sanitary-hygienic unit of the centre; repair the living quarters of the homeless; assist with the residents’ dental expenses; purchase medications; modernise of the canteen; and improve building insulation.
DAP in Ukraine 2017-2018
In 2017-18, the Australian Embassy supported the following DAP projects.
Station of Equal Opportunities (Kharkiv)
Kharkiv Station
This NGO provides extensive support to internally displaced persons from the Donbas conflict, as well as persons that have fallen on hard times, to enable them to adjust to their new reality, secure employment and housing, and access social services. DAP funds supported a project focussed on training disadvantaged women, especially those with young children, about new technologies, computer programs and the Internet to support jobs they can do remotely. The idea is to equip these women with skills and new professions to enable them to work from home and potentially create self-employment opportunities.
Provision of equipment for the treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Puschsha-Vodytsya, Kyiv)
Medical Rehabilitation Centre Puschsha-Vodytsya
The Centre was founded in 2016 to provide medical and psychological rehabilitation for people who suffered from the conflict in Donbas but it lacked a suitably equipped space to deliver full-fledged psychological assistance. DAP funds were used to equip the Centre with furniture and audio/visual equipment for psycho-physiological relief in order to provide quality medical and psychological assistance for treatment of PTSD. The Centre can treat 120 people at a time or about 2500 over the course of a year.
Supporting social and professional rehabilitation of children (Novi Sanzhary, Poltava)
The Union of Organizations of Invalids of Ukraine (Poltava Regional Centre)
The Novosanzharskiy orphanage works to ensure the social protection of children with disabilities. The orphanage provides medical and welfare services, and currently hosts 95 girls who experience deficiencies in their mental and physical development. The project will allow participants to learn skills that will assist them in transitioning to independent living. DAP funds supported the purchase of sewing equipment, its installation in the orphanage, and training for participants to become proficient seamstresses. The aim is to support the social and professional rehabilitation of participants, and equip them with a skill to help them secure employment once they leave the orphanage.
Training female inmates in sewing skills (Melitopol, Zaporizhzhya)
Melitopol Higher Professional School
Melitopol prison is the only facility in Ukraine for juvenile female offenders. Utilising DAP funds, industrial sewing equipment was purchased and installed in the prison, and young women will be trained as tailors. The trainees will receive certificates to confirm their qualifications, which should help them secure employment once they are released.
Dental care for persons impacted by the Donbas conflict (Kramatorsk, Donetsk)
Donetsk National Medical University
The university’s dental school provides free dental care to the participants and victims of the Donbas conflict in east Ukraine (internally displaced persons, veterans, and socially vulnerable people). DAP funds were used to purchase new equipment for the dental faculty which will be used both to teach dental students and for the provision of free dental treatment to eligible clients. The university is located Kramatorsk which is the regional capital of government-controlled territory in Donetsk.
Happy childhood for everybody (Khortytsya Island, Zaporizhzhya)
Khortytsya National Educational Rehabilitation Academy
The Academy is multi-disciplinary but a key focus is the therapeutical and psychological rehabilitation of children with special physical needs. It operates as an early social rehabilitation centre and has extensive experience in assisting disabled children in adapting to everyday life. DAP funds provided new rehabilitation equipment which will help substantially improve the quality and quantity of rehabilitation procedures, and support not just the children but also their parents.
Medical aid for people affected by hostilities in Donetsk (Druzhkivka, Donetsk)
MCHF Druzhkivsky clinical city hospital №1
This hospital offers medical aid to socially disadvantaged people and those affected by hostilities in the Donetsk region. DAP funds supported the purchase of modern surgical and diagnostic equipment for the hospital, which is located in government-controlled territory in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.
Life and Self-Skills Training Centre for young adults with disabilities (Znamyanka, Kirovohrad)
Step Forward Charity Fund
The project allows teenagers with mild mental and physical disabilities at Znamyanka Orphanage to develop skills for day-to-day life such as cooking, doing laundry, сleaning their rooms, money management, and social skills like communication and how to manage at the grocery store, bank, post-office etc. DAP funds were used to supply the Life and Self-Skills Training Centre with appliances and equipment for the training kitchen, dining room and laundry, and support training sessions run by a certified trainer. The Training Centre is the first stage of 3-year transition program to independent or supportive living for orphans with mild disabilities.
Rehabilitation for Donbas war veterans (Rivne)
Rivne Regional Hospital for Veterans of War
The hospital provides rehabilitation aimed at restoring functions of the body that have been lost due to illness or injury. Ergotherapy offers a unique interdisciplinary rehabilitation approach that combines a therapeutic rehabilitation, habilitation and compensation (adaptation) program. DAP funds were used to supply a new ergotherapy room with essential equipment to allow veterans who have suffered various injuries and illnesses, including amputation, to undergo complex rehabilitation. Some 1500-2000 people are in need of rehabilitation, and ergotherapy will help them adapt to their new physical circumstances and gain new skills and abilities to carry out tasks and participate in everyday life.
Language laboratory for children to study foreign languages (Orynyn, Khmelnytsky)
Orynyn Boarding School
The project provided the opportunity for disadvantaged children to study foreign languages with DAP funds used to equip the language laboratory. The boarding school is located in a small village in the Khmelnytsky region, and is home to 188 children from low-income, disadvantaged and large families, and orphans.
DAP in Ukraine 2016-2017
In 2016-17, the Australian Embassy supported the following DAP projects.
The Ukraine Prosthetic Assistance Project (Dnipro)
Canada Ukraine International Assistance Fund
The project is introducing western standards and practices of medical care to Ukrainian institutions, medical specialists and persons with disability. Bringing to Ukraine western medical experts to train their Ukrainian counterparts in prosthetics maintenance and rehabilitation, the project intends to create a novel sustainable system of physical, social, vocational and psychological rehabilitation; to improve standards of prosthetic treatment; and to develop professional training and mentoring services for persons with disability in Ukraine. While in Ukraine, the project team will also provide specialised fitting of sports prosthetics for members of the Ukrainian team who have been invited to compete at the Invictus Game 2017 in Toronto, Canada (a good warm-up for the Invictus Games 2018 in Sydney, Australia!).
Don’t change climate – educate youth! (Yaremche, Ivano-Frankivsk region)
Eco-play (NGO)
This project aims to enhance sustainability through environmental protection. Effective environmental education tools for children will be introduced and applied, including through the promotion of outdoor activities in order to raise awareness about nature heritage and climate change effects. Activities such as these are invaluable in ensuring the continued protection and respect of Carpathian National Nature Park – a priceless natural resource in Ukraine. The project hopes to lay the foundation for the future introduction of the Ukraine Junior Park Ranger program.
Community oriented project “I can” (Lyman, Donetsk region; Starobilsk & Severodonetsk, Luhansk region)
Ukraine NGO Forum
Aiming to facilitate integration of IDPs in local communities, the project seeks to develop hubs for IDPs and local communities for various scopes of educational, cultural, leisure activities in Donetsk oblast. Such hubs will enable greater communication and personal exchanges between IDPs and the host communities, support new initiatives in the community, and reduce tensions where they may develop.
Dental equipment for orphanage for children with disabilities (Bila Tserkva, Kyiv region)
International Charity Fund Lotus
New dental equipment will be purchased to provide greater dental care for children in the Bila Tserkva orphanage. Many children at the orphanage suffer from mental and physical developmental challenges. This new equipment will improve the quality of life and health care for these disadvantaged children.
Creative art-therapy studio for children from disadvantaged families (Kyiv)
International Charity Fund Lotus
The project will launch a creative art-therapy studio for delivering creative, learning and art-therapy classes for children from disadvantaged families. Art-therapy classes led by certified teachers and therapists will be delivered to enhance the emotional and mental health of children from vulnerable families, contributing to a better well-being and quality of life for children and their families alike.
Improving the quality of life of war-affected people with disability in Ukraine (Luhansk region)
Handicap International
The goal of the project is to improve the functional independence of disabled people who have been adversely affected by the conflict in eastern Ukraine. Direct functional rehabilitation care and adapted assistive devices will be provided to those in need, sustained through the training of caregivers, health and social workers who will continue the work in the years to come. The project will support the ongoing work of Handicap International in Ukraine over the longer term.
Establishing the potential for successful social intergration for internally displaced women
All-Ukrainian Charitable Organisation "CONVICTUS UKRAINE"
The project anticipates the creation of accommodation for 15 internally displaced women in the Center for psychosocial support in order to undergo the program that includes conflict relief support, social rehabilitation, social integration, self-employment. The Center has the All-Ukrainian status and accepts IDPs from the entire country.
DAP in Ukraine 2015-2016
In 2015-16, the Australian Embassy supported the following DAP projects.
Livelihood and Self-esteem Improvement of Internally Displaced Women
The project seeks to empower Internally Displaced Women economically and improve their livelihood security by practical training courses in Drohobych, Lviv region. Women will be provided with new professional skills for further practical application in order to help them to earn their living, improve their economical as well as psychological state.
Assistance for the most vulnerable IDPs: single mothers with children
The project seeks to provide basic needs assistance to conflict affected housekeeping women (85 IDP families) living in government controlled Ukrainian territories – Berdyansk, Zaporizhzhya region. The project will provide vouchers for the women to obtain items for winterization, food and hygiene items.
Dzherelo Children’s Rehabilitation Centre Kindergarten & School Department Support
The Project seeks to implement a Tomatis Method listening program therapy, which proved to be one of the most effective in the work with children with behavioural disabilities. Using the Tomatis Method Dzherelo Children’s Rehabilitation Centre will be a pioneer in that field in Lviv and will serve for more quantity of children and youth not only from Lviv region but all over Ukraine.
Advanced Radiological Centre
The project seeks to improve the quality of the diagnostic of the paediatric patients with leukaemia and other mortal blood diseases.