Ukraine starts rebuilding from scratch first village destroyed by war

Ukraine’s government has presented its pilot project of reconstructing settlements destroyed in Russia’s full-scale war, which includes a settlement in the southern Kherson region.

Based on the ‘build back better’ principle, the village of Posad-Pokrovske will be reconstructed in a comprehensive manner, with a systematic approach, new planning and complete transformation of the village, the Ukrainian reconstruction agency said in a statement.

"The presentation of the concept is the first step towards the implementation of our ambitious project to restore six settlements in five regions affected by Russia’s armed aggression," the head of the agency, Mustafa Nayem, was quoted as saying.

Ukraine starts rebuilding from scratch first village destroyed by war
Photo via Ukraine reconstruction agency

Posad-Pokrovske is a village on the border of the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions in southern Ukraine, located 35 kilometres away from Kherson.

In February and March 2022, after Russia’s occupation of Kherson, Posad-Pokrovske became a frontline village.

Until November 2022, the Russians shelled Posad-Pokrovske more than 350 times per day. Of the 940 houses, 450 were destroyed, the rest suffered partial destruction.

Before Russia's full-scale invasion, the village was home to 2,240 people, and during the war, up to 20 remained.

The opinions of local residents were collected through online voting, which was used to determine a list of the main expectations of the community.

During the presentation, the residents of Posad Pokrovsky were shown the architecture of their future village, based on the principles of barrier-free and inclusive accessibility.

Ukraine starts rebuilding from scratch first village destroyed by war
Photo via Ukraine reconstruction agency

Posad-Pokrovske is one of the six settlements that will be reconstructed according to the ‘build back better’ principle, which takes after post-World War Two experience.

In April, Ukraine’s government identified six settlements where the pilot project will be implemented in a comprehensive manner and according to new principles. Those include Borodianka and Moshchun in the Kyiv region; Trostianets in the Sumy region; Tsyrkuny in the Kharkiv region; and Yahidne in the Chernihiv region.