Kyiv, Ukraine – The Ukrainian government has announced the allocation of approximately 16 billion hryvnia (equivalent to about 334 million euros) to support the state-owned national railway company “Ukrazaleznitsia” for 2026. This comes as part of its efforts to ensure the continuity of public rail transport despite economic and logistical challenges.
This announcement was made by Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko during the launch of the new social program “UZ-3000”. She emphasized that government support is intended to ensure citizens’ ability to travel and find employment within the company.
“The government is funding the company ‘Okersaleznitsia’ in difficult times… This money comes from taxpayers’ money, so citizens should receive support from the company,” Sviridenko said.
Part of this support is expected to be used to pay staff salaries. This will include implementing internal cost reductions of at least 10 billion hryvnia (approximately €210 million), along with a phased plan to transfer state-subsidized passenger service (SSO) responsibilities to the company, with the aim of improving the quality and efficiency of transportation.
The Prime Minister stressed: “It is important that these services operate as efficiently as possible, and that as many passengers as possible are able to travel throughout the year.”
This support comes after the government allocated approximately 13 billion hryvnia (270 million euros) in 2025. This reflects Kyiv’s continued commitment to maintaining access to rail transport as a strategic public service.
