The public union “The League of the Strong” implemented the Z.N.A.M.Y. project to amplify the voice of women with disabilities and those with experience of internal displacement in decision-making processes. The project was supported by UN Women and the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF).
Project Goals
- Empowered women with disabilities and/or displacement experience to influence decisions affecting their communities.
- Built the advocacy capacity of local civil society organizations (CSOs).
- Strengthened the institutional sustainability of women-led organizations providing support to affected groups.
Key Components
- The School of Advocacy trained women with disabilities and/or displacement experience to drive change and influence local decision-making.
- The Advocacy Project Accelerator supported CSO representatives with training and grants for advocacy campaign implementation and institutional development.
Geographic Reach and Access
The project was implemented in 9 regions
of Ukraine (Vinnytsia, Lviv, Cherkasy, Kyiv, Zakarpattia, Kherson, Chernivtsi, Poltava, and Kharkiv). Activities took place in both urban and rural areas, with a focus on communities hosting internally displaced persons (IDPs) and those with low infrastructure accessibility.
Key Results
- ✅ 186 women completed advocacy training
- ✅ 64 advocacy plans were developed
- ✅ 19 organizations received grants for campaign implementation
- ✅ 13 advocacy campaigns were successfully carried out
- ✅ 312 events were held in cooperation with local authorities
- ✅ 257,000 people were reached through advocacy and awareness campaigns
Notable Achievements
- Added Frisium, a critical antiepileptic medication, to the official list of approved drugs in Ukraine.
- Secured legislative changes to ensure housing compensation for IDPs from occupied territories.
- Facilitated the inclusion of IDPs into local programs in cities like Brovary, creating scalable models.
- Developed and adopted the National Action Plan to improve the quality of life for people with dementia.
- Created the “Assistant for a Person with Mental Disorders” roadmap, prepared for piloting in Kyiv.
- Helped develop and adopt local barrier-free strategies in 6 communities for 2025–2026.
Strengthened Organizational Capacity
55 webinars were conducted on financial reporting, project management, communication, and creating accessible environments.
53 internal documents were created: strategic plans, fundraising strategies, communications policies, and more.
One sub-grantee secured additional funding from UN Women during the mentorship phase to launch its own initiative.
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