Key points
- The Ministry of Social Policy has developed a draft resolution on a new procedure for verifying humanitarian organisations.
- Verification involves automated decisions and data exchange with state registries.
- The status is granted for 12 months and is confirmed by an electronic extract with a QR code.
- Experts note transparency and shorter decision-making times.
- Financial and reporting requirements can make access difficult for small and newly established organisations.
- The lack of a clear appeal procedure is a cause for concern in the public sector.
The Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity of Ukraine has prepared a draft resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers introducing a new procedure for verifying humanitarian organisations. The document was developed in accordance with Law No. 4608-IX and provides for the creation of an institution of “verified humanitarian organisations” with fully digital decision-making procedures.
The draft proposes automated verification of organisations through the Automated Humanitarian Aid System using interdepartmental electronic data exchange with the registers of the Ministry of Justice, the State Tax Service and the Pension Fund. The status of a verified humanitarian organisation will be granted for a period of 12 months, and decisions will be made without the participation of officials in a fully automated mode. Organisations will receive an electronic extract with a QR code, and information about them will be displayed in an open public register.
Experts from the Ukrainian Independent Centre for Political Research have given a positive assessment of the proposed changes. They highlight the formalisation of criteria, increased transparency and the reduction of the status confirmation period to 72 hours. The draft also provides for unified rules for the use of humanitarian transport and integration with existing mechanisms for crossing the state border, which may simplify the logistics of humanitarian cargo.
At the same time, the document poses risks for civil society organisations, especially small and newly established ones. The financial threshold of 2 million hryvnias and the requirement for public reporting for at least two years may limit access to verification for some organisations working directly in the field of humanitarian response. Of particular concern is the lack of a clearly defined procedure for appealing automatic refusals, as well as the wide range of grounds for revoking status that has already been granted.
The draft resolution is seen as a step towards digitalisation, transparency and increased accountability in the humanitarian sector, but experts stress the need to refine it to take into account the interests of civil society organisations of different sizes.
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