The government proposes to source funds for the payment of “thousand from Zelensky” from the Unemployment Fund.
This was announced by the head of the Budget Committee of the Verkhovna Rada, Roksolana Pidlasa, in an interview with Forbes.
“At the beginning of 2024, this fund transferred 10 billion hryvnias to a special fund of the state budget to implement programs of the Ministry of Economy in support of business. The ministry stated that the best way to combat unemployment is to create new jobs,” Pidlasa reported.
According to the deputy, in the 2024 budget, these funds were allocated to programs for partial compensation of the cost of purchasing agricultural machinery and domestically produced equipment (1 billion), industrial parks (1 billion), investment nannies (3 billion), compensation for humanitarian demining costs (2 billion), and cashback (3 billion).
“Of the 10 billion hryvnias, 9.3 billion remained unused. These funds will cover the thousand until the end of 2024. It is possible that there may be funds left for 2025 as well, depending on the number of people who wish to take it,” she added.
According to government estimates known to Forbes, up to 15 million people could benefit from the “thousand from Zelensky” program. However, Pidlasa believes the number will be lower.
Recall that President Volodymyr Zelensky instructed the government to launch the eSupport program, which provides for a payment of 1000 hryvnias to every citizen starting December 1.
Later, the Cabinet of Ministers explained the purpose of introducing such a program and how the payment can be processed.