£46.5 million for free school meals for all pupils: Svyrydenko reveals the details
This was announced by Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, with further details also released by the Cabinet of Ministers and the Ministry of Education and Science.
The essence of the decision is simple: the state will not launch new long-term renovation projects, but will complete those school canteens that are already almost ready. Additional funding will be allocated to 19 projects started in 2025, where the completion rate is at least 60%. It is precisely these projects that the government has decided to prioritise, so that children can sooner have modern catering facilities and decent conditions for hot meals.
Svyrydenko presents this decision not as a one-off measure, but as part of a major reform of school catering. According to her, free hot lunches are already being provided to all pupils in years 1–11 in frontline communities, and to pupils in years 1–4 in other regions. The next target is significantly higher: from 1 September this year, the government aims to provide hot lunches to all schoolchildren across Ukraine.
In figures, the reform already looks ambitious. According to the Ministry of Education and Science, around 20% of school canteens in Ukraine have been modernised. Of these, 188 were renovated using state subsidies, with 155 already completed and a further 33 nearing completion. Additionally, over 1,500 canteens have been renovated using local budget funds and with the support of international partners.
The main significance of this news for parents and schools is that the government is no longer merely talking about catering reform, but is committing specific facilities and specific deadlines to it. 46.5 million UAH is, in essence, funding to ensure that by autumn there are no ‘almost ready’ canteens left that never actually opened. And the political stakes are even higher – to move to a model from September onwards where a hot lunch will no longer be a selective benefit, but a standard part of the school day for all children.
