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CANADEM IN UKRAINE

Home > CANADEM IN UKRAINE
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Supporting Ukraine’s Children and Youth: CANADEM`s Ukraine Recovery Program Manager joins Meeting with First Lady Olena Zelenska

CANADEM was pleased to participate in the visit of Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska in Toronto in September. Organized by the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF), the event provided an important opportunity for discussion among like-minded organizations and key donors on efforts to support and guide children and youth affected by conflict in Ukraine.

The First Lady highlighted the realities of childhood during Russia’s war against Ukraine. As attacks continue to threaten schools and communities, education is moving underground in some areas so that children can continue learning in safer conditions. Hearing about these efforts underscored the extraordinary measures required to preserve everyday opportunities to learn, develop and connect with others.

She also shared initiatives for children and families through the Olena Zelenska Foundation, including safe learning environments, homes for large foster families and the 12–21 youth spaces offering psychosocial support. Another important focus was the Superheroes School network, which enables children undergoing long-term medical treatment to continue their education in hospitals.

CANADEM is proud to help support Ukraine’s children and young people through the Canada–Ukraine Program for Youth (CUPY). Developed in collaboration with Ukraine’s Mental Health Coordination Centre within the First Lady’s All-Ukrainian Mental Health Program “How Are You?” (“Ти як?”), CUPY strengthens the knowledge and practical skills of professionals who work directly with children and adolescents.

By equipping these professionals with evidence-based approaches to youth mental health literacy, basic helping skills and resilience, the program supports their ability to respond to young people’s needs during this exceptionally challenging time.

Supporting children also means assisting the adults they turn to. CANADEM remains committed to working with Ukrainian and Canadian partners to strengthen the national frameworks that help young people retain a sense of connection, possibility and hope.

Happy Independence Day, Ukraine! For many years, CANADEM has been proud to work alongside our Ukrainian partners and friends, building strong and lasting relationships, which have been enhanced through our CANADEM Representative Office in Ukraine. Today and every day, we stand with Ukraine.
 
Wishing Ukraine strength, freedom and peace.
Слава Україні!

🇺🇦

Supporting Ukraine’s democracy, resilience, recovery, and long-term institutional capacity since 2004.

CANADEM has worked in and with Ukraine for more than two decades, supporting democratic processes, international monitoring, humanitarian response, expert deployments, and recovery-focused initiatives. CANADEM’s engagement in Ukraine reflects a long-standing commitment to responsive, people-centered, and partnership-based international cooperation.

First major election observation mission
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OSCE Special Monitoring Mission experts, 2014–2022
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Ukrainian-speaking experts on roster
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Representative Office registered in Kyiv
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On this page
01.

Election Observation Missions

CANADEM has played a significant role in supporting democratic processes in Ukraine through major Canadian election observation missions.

Election Observation Missions in Ukraine infographic covering the 2004, 2010 to 2012, and 2019 Canadian missions
Canadian Ukrainian Election Observation Mission group in Kyiv, Ukraine, 2019
Canadian Ukrainian Election Observation Mission 2019, Kyiv, Ukraine
02.

Supporting International Monitoring and Security Efforts

From 2014 to 2022, CANADEM deployed 73 Canadian experts to the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine.

These experts contributed to critical areas including ceasefire monitoring, mental health and psychosocial support, and gender equality. In early 2022, as Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, CANADEM supported the evacuation of 37 personnel.

Canadian experts deployed to the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission, 2014–2022
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Personnel evacuated as the full-scale invasion began in early 2022
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03.

Humanitarian Response Since Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, CANADEM has supported humanitarian and recovery efforts through expert deployments to Ukraine and the surrounding region.

Between 2022 and 2025, CANADEM facilitated 48 expert deployments in support of United Nations partners, including: UNHCR, WHO, UNFPA, OCHA, and UNICEF. These deployments have contributed to humanitarian coordination, protection, health, mental health and psychosocial support, gender equality, and other urgent response priorities.

CANADEM also maintains a strong roster of Ukrainian-speaking professionals, with more than 800 Ukrainian-speaking experts available to support Ukraine-related assignments.

Expert deployments in support of UN partners, 2022–2025
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Ukrainian-speaking experts available for Ukraine-related assignments
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Humanitarian Response in Ukraine 2022 to 2025 infographic showing 48 expert deployments supporting United Nations partners
04.

CANADEM Representative Office in Ukraine

CANADEM Representative Office in Ukraine logo

In July 2025, CANADEM officially registered its Representative Office in Ukraine in Kyiv, marking an important step in strengthening its operational presence and long-term engagement in the country. The opening of the office enables closer coordination with Ukrainian partners and supports CANADEM’s contribution to recovery efforts amid the ongoing full-scale war.

The Representative Office focuses on several priority areas, including:
  1. Engagement of Ukrainian and international experts in reconstruction initiatives
  2. Strengthening institutional capacity of state bodies and local governments
  3. Supporting mental health and psychosocial programs
  4. Advancing civil society and democratic practices
  5. Promoting gender equality and inclusive approaches to recovery
05.

CUPY — Canada–Ukraine Program for Youth

In 2025, CANADEM initiated formal cooperation with the Coordination Centre for Mental Health of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and signed an MOU.

The Coordination Centre for Mental Health of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine is the central government body responsible for implementing the nationwide All-Ukrainian Mental Health Program, an initiative created by First Lady Olena Zelenska.

This partnership supports the development of a training program (CUPY) for professionals working with children and youth, with a particular focus on adolescents aged 9 to 19.

It reflects CANADEM’s commitment to supporting sustainable mental health systems for youth as part of broader recovery and resilience efforts in Ukraine.

Program development is led by Canadian experts, including Professor Patti Ranahan, PhD, Concordia University, Montreal, and The Honorable Dr. Stanley Kutcher, Professor Emeritus, Dalhousie University, in collaboration with Ukrainian specialists in education, mental health, and youth support. It consists of five education/training modules that can be delivered as one 30-hour course or as separate modules, as deemed appropriate by Ukrainian authorities in the future.

The five modules:

  1. Adolescent Development
  2. Building Hope, Resilience, and Community
  3. Mental Health Literacy
  4. Basic Counselling Skills
  5. Career and Future Pathway Development

CANADEM successfully piloted the CUPY — Canada–Ukraine Program for Youth with the Coordination Centre for Mental Health. A cohort of 30 social pedagogues from communities in the Kyiv and Kharkiv regions participated in a pilot of the initial modules of the program: three modules were delivered online and two modules in person in Kyiv.

CANADEM representatives held meetings with key stakeholders, including officials from the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, the Embassy of Canada in Ukraine, NGOs, and academic institutions. We look forward to the next stages of this important project and to its potential expansion across Ukraine.

Meeting with Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine Anastasiia Konovalova, Honorable Stanley Kutcher, Senator of Canada, Oksana Zbitnieva, Head of Coordination Center of Mental Health of Ukraine, Oksana Zubriy – Ukraine Recovery Program Manager, CANADEM. April 2026, Kyiv, Ukraine
CUPY training participants with the Canada and Ukraine flag in Kyiv, March to April 2026
CUPY Training, Kyiv, Ukraine, March–April 2026
Minister of Youth and Sport of Ukraine Matvii Bidnyi, Honorable Stanley Kutcher, Senator of Canada, Oksana Zbitnieva, Head of Coordination Center of Mental Health of Ukraine, Oksana Zubriy – Ukraine Recovery Program Manager, CANADEM. April 2026, Kyiv, Ukraine
06.

Looking Ahead

Through its Representative Office in Kyiv, CANADEM looks forward to deepening partnerships, supporting Ukrainian institutions and communities, and contributing to Ukraine’s long-term recovery, resilience, and democratic development.

CANADEM welcomes collaboration with Ukrainian institutions, international organizations, civil society partners, and experts committed to supporting Ukraine’s recovery and resilience.

To learn more about CANADEM’s work in Ukraine or explore partnership opportunities, please contact us: [email protected]

CANADEM

CANADEM is an international not-for-profit NGO dedicated to advancing international peace and security through the rostering, rapid mobilization, and mission.

Respect for the environment
An ever-increasing awareness that caring for the environment is the responsibility of us all, regardless of our area of expertise or profession, has propelled CANADEM to place more focus on our own global footprint as well as that of our sector. During this Period, we have embarked on a challenge to enhance our learning regarding the environment and how we interact with it – including efforts to create a baseline and targets for improving how we deal with our natural environment. We are therefore making a conscious and transparent effort to measure and manage the way we affect the natural world around us, hopefully becoming better caretakers along the way.
Impact Driven
CANADEM has always valued the positive impact we make in the world as a foundation of our work. It is this guiding principle that has led us to form lasting partnerships, in support of other entities, if we feel they can add greater value than we can at CANADEM. Searching for our comparative advantage, while avoiding falling into a simple race to find funding opportunities, is therefore essential to CANADEM. As we see an increasing number of individuals suffering from the consequences of conflict in the world, and prepare for even greater numbers of environmental disasters, the need to prioritise the areas where we can make a real difference and combine our efforts with like-minded entities, is vital to achieving success.
Efficiency
The objective of CANADEM’s leadership has always been to find the most innovative and cost-effective ways to contribute to communities in need, and not to place the growth of numbers and our budgets at the centre of our efforts. As a result, we have adopted a light footprint in terms of our human resources complement and infrastructure, making use of the latest technology, and empowering our small team to be as innovative and flexible in solving problems as our procedures allow. Our structures allow us to scale up and down as required, and for staff to work in different teams, according to the needs of the moment. Our 30 years of experience has taught us what our core capacities are and how to allocate precious resources.
Accountability & Transparency Values
From CANADEM’s earliest beginnings as a Government of Canada project, and during its rapid evolution into an independent NGO with its roots in international service, the principles of accountability and transparency have been a component of CANADEM’s DNA. Accountability for the use of public funds has been incorporated into procedures that needed to respond to the high standards of government. Transparency has been the vehicle to ensure the vital accountability that CANADEM maintains. CANADEM’s headquarters team is a well-trained group of committed individuals who believe in the important work they do – including the conviction that providing the best value possible to the communities and donors we serve is a primary component of our job. CANADEM’s rules and procedures are therefore established to ensure that every step of the way we are confident of our work, and can demonstrate its efficiency and effectiveness.
People-Centered Values
Our work is about deploying people to help people. It is therefore of paramount importance to us that we are all relating to individuals in our chain of service delivery in a way that is respectful, understanding, considerate, and that brings out the best in us. Our internal working context is designed to foster humanity, fairness and support among our staff, which in turn aims to foster those same qualities among the experts we deploy. We have invested in a team of individuals (our Duty of Care Team), who provide a safety net for those experts we deploy. By taking care of our staff members and our deployed experts, we ensure that we have an effective flow of communication between all aspects of our operation. Our experienced and motivated staff feel supported, and are in turn able to support our experts in times of stress and prevent any potential problems from occurring.
Diversity & Inclusion Values
Ensuring an inclusive workplace that integrates diversity in terms of gender, language, culture, ethnicity and religion, is of prime importance for CANADEM both internally and with regards to our work with partners. We have made significant progress in attracting experts from 178 countries around the world – including from countries that are recipients of international assistance – so that a diversity of perspectives, understanding and expertise may be integrated into all operations that CANADEM supports. From our fair and transparent selection process, to our supportive Duty of Care Team (which ensures that individuals deployed have the resources they need to feel comfortable and confident in their work), we have invested significant energy in fostering diversity and inclusion within our roster system, in our election monitoring deployments, and in our own direct implementation of programming, at headquarters and in the field.
Partnership Values
The majority of our experts work within the assistance operations of our partners. Partnership is therefore of primary importance and value to us, and is key to the way we operate. Our many long-term relationships with other actors have been forged by promoting trust and understanding. The ability to work together with other actors, and not in competition, has allowed CANADEM to enhance the work of governments or organizations by injecting vital expertise, and targeting it where it is needed most. We believe that we can create a greater impact, when we work in partnership.