Bank Lviv, through its Charity Fund, and international humanitarian and development agency Oxfam announce a unique partnership grant program that aims to support small businesses engaged in charity to help Ukrainians affected by the war.
The €1 million program starts in September 2022 and will last until August 31 2023.
Up to €25,000 in individual grants will be available to as many as 40 small businesses in the western region of Ukraine. The bank will be responsible for receiving, approving and dispersing these micro-grants to entrepreneurs and small enterprises that offer Ukrainian people access to critical goods and services and job opportunities, especially aimed at those who have been internally displaced.
Cooperation with Bank Lviv is the first initiative for Oxfam in Ukraine in offering humanitarian support through social entrepreneurs in partnership with a commercial bank.
This “Grant for Business Support” is a unique program for Oxfam, for Bank Lviv and for Ukraine as a whole. We’ve worked together with the Oxfam team aligned in our goal — to help people affected by war in Ukraine. Since the first days of full-scale invasion, local businesses intuitively started to help the millions of people who were seeking safety. With these grants we want to help this business-centered recovery and stabilization, so that the local market can develop its charity activity, in particular employing people affected by war and boosting their efforts to get critical goods and services to those who need but cannot afford them. We are deeply grateful to Oxfam for their solidarity and support,” said Natalia Osadcii, Deputy Deputy CEO Bank Lviv.
“Oxfam believes that one of the quickest and most effective ways of helping Ukrainian people to rebuild their lives is via a thriving local economy. By investing humanitarian aid directly into small charitable businesses, more people can be reached with the goods, services and jobs they need at the grassroots. The bank has the infrastructure and experience in selecting those charitable businesses that will achieve the biggest impact for local people, for a relatively modest grant,” said Nicola Bay, Oxfam’s Ukrainian response lead.
The grant can be used to help business recover and stabilize, so they can continue providing a critical lifeline to people affected by war on a charity basis. The grants will be aimed at charitable ventures providing critical goods such as food, water, hygiene products, clothing, shelter, services, and jobs.
When approving grants, the selection committee will look into applicants’ reputation and positive experience in the humanitarian field. Applicants will need to provide measurable and convincing results of previous initiatives, as well as impact of the future grant. An important component will be how many people will each grantee be able to reach with benefits. The bank will receive online applications through its website https://www.banklviv.com/grant-oxfam/
“The joint work of Oxfam, the Bank and local businesses will result in a large-scale social and humanitarian effect at the grassroots. We will foster access to grants including by focusing on rural businesses and farm producers, who provide a critical lifeline in Ukraine’s context as global agricultural power. We want these grants to be immediately impactful and sustainable, so that people who lost everything get a real possibility to restart their life, become economically stable and have hope for the future,” said Natalia Osadcii.
About Bank Lviv
https://www.banklviv.com/
It is a European Bank, which since 1990 has been providing reliable banking services to businesses and individuals in western Ukraine. Bank Lviv is one of the banks in the western region of Ukraine, which demonstrates the highest development rates and is a leading partner of micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises. Bank Lviv’s vision is to be Bank No. 1 in west of Ukraine for people who are actively developing and improving the local business environment. Being one of the thirty leading banks in Ukraine, Bank Lviv operates through 19 branches in the west of the country and in Kyiv. Bank is partnering with reputable international financial institutions as KfW, Triodos Bank, EBRD, EFSE, GGF, EIB and USAID.
About Oxfam
https://www.oxfam.org/
It is an international organization of 20 affiliates operating in more than 90 countries around the world. The purpose of the association is to solve problems of poverty and related injustice worldwide. In all Oxfam projects, the ultimate goal is to enable people to exercise their rights and opportunities, personally manage their own lives, receive decent pay for the work done, etc.
