A grant for working with grants on a larger scale: how did it become possible? The story of “Career Start” from Zaporizhzhia

Svitlana Murich, a sole entrepreneur from Zaporizhzhia, recently employed three young people after receiving a grant of 164,460 UAH from the “Career Start” program. The funding covers the period from December 2024 to March 2025 and is used to pay salaries, taxes, and provide mentoring support for the young participants.

“Thanks to employment through ‘Career Start,’ I entered a completely new world for me – a world where I can help Ukrainians discover more and more opportunities during such a difficult time for the country. Recently, for example, I was involved in writing a grant for relocated residents of Melitopol. In general, we work a lot with communities and organizations affected by the war. I’m also currently studying project management to better understand processes and details”, – says Eva, an 18-year-old who joined the company’s team.

“I work on monitoring grant opportunities. I search for information, analyze it, and categorize it. It’s a large amount of information every day, but I really enjoy it. A lot depends on the team atmosphere, support, and clear task-setting. Another big advantage for me is the remote work format. I really hope my participation in this team won’t end when the grant period finishes”, – says Mykola, who is 20 years old.

The selection of employers for funding was carried out by seven experts. Among the supported projects were not only direct employment after graduation from vocational education institutions, but also initiatives focused on practical skills for future accountants, grant and project writing, youth development in the beauty industry, promotion of legal businesses, blockchain technologies and AI as tools for business processes, modernization of seating for “School Buses,” as well as business support and consulting.

“For me, it’s important not just to find employees, but to give young people a chance to discover their abilities. And I definitely made the right choice. Every day I enjoy watching three wonderful young people take their first professional steps. I have the honor of supporting them at the start of their careers. By now, they have learned how to properly write grant applications – both for government programs and for international and foreign organizations. This has freed up my own time, allowing me to focus more on consulting businesses and NGOs on applying for various grants and funding programs”, – says Svitlana Murich, the head of the enterprise.

This is one of the first grant competitions of the Ukrainian Youth Foundation – a newly established state institution. In 1.5 years of work, its team has brought together more than 200 of the country’s top experts across two thematic areas, organized a local policy development workshop, held 12 regional forums, partnered in three grant programs, and launched a unique platform for sharing key data and analytics in the field of youth policy. Its partners include not only government institutions but also influential international stakeholders such as the EU Delegation to Ukraine, UN agencies, GIZ, the Eastern Europe Foundation, and ISAR Ednannia.

“The first stage of the ‘Career Start’ grant competition covered six regions of Ukraine. Out of 19 applications, seven youth projects were supported with a total grant amount of nearly 1.5 million UAH. The maximum possible grant per project was 380,000 UAH. The program focuses on young people aged 16-21 who are graduates of vocational education institutions and are interested in gaining professional experience and official employment in their field”, – shares Vitalii Kryzhanivskyi, Head of the Grant Programs Department of the Ukrainian Youth Foundation.

The grants were available to all Ukrainian employers willing to hire graduates of vocational education institutions – both legal entities (regardless of legal form, ownership type, or subordination) and sole entrepreneurs. Overall, during its first stage, the “Career Start” initiative provided employment for 33 young people. The grant budget was provided by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the German state development bank KfW.

“Ensuring continuous operation of our enterprise has its own financial specifics. In most cases, payment for services is received several months after successful completion, which sometimes creates difficult periods. The funds from ‘Career Start’ helped cover exactly those gaps. I’m very grateful for this support and would love to see it continued”, – adds Svitlana Murich.

The grant initiative of the Ukrainian Youth Foundation has already covered six regions of Ukraine: Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Zakarpattia, Lviv, and Kyiv regions. It is implemented in partnership with UNICEF and the Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Family Foundation and aims to expand professional development opportunities for young people through entrepreneurship and employment.

“According to UNDP research, in the summer of 2024, one-third of young people in Ukraine were concerned about a lack of money, opportunities for self-realization and personal development, employment, and the loss of relevance of their profession. Only 32% of surveyed young people feel they can personally influence changes in their community, while 58% do not feel this way. This is a challenge for us. Almost every month, our team travels to different regions of Ukraine. We meet with thousands of young people, local student communities, youth councils, youth centers, NGOs, and local activists. We clearly see that economic stability is a key factor for young people, as it directly provides opportunities to live in Ukraine – financial, material, housing, educational, logistical, and security-related. That is why we invest exactly in this area”, – explains Mykola Kobysia, Director of the Ukrainian Youth Foundation.