PARIS/KYIV- FEBRUARY 14 – Two years after the invasion of Ukraine began, UNESCO has published a new assessment of the impact of the war on the country’s culture and tourism sectors. The total cost of the damage to these sectors is estimated at nearly $3.5 billion, and nearly $9 billion will be needed over the next ten years to enable them to recover.
“To date, the total cost of physical damage to the culture and tourism sectors in Ukraine is estimated by UNESCO at nearly $3.5 billion, compared to $2.6 billion a year ago, an increase of 40%”, announced Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO. UNESCO’s is the third assessment of the damage and needs since February 2022, which was carried out jointly by the World Bank, the Ukrainian government, the European Commission and the United Nations.
This estimate covers a total of 4,779 cultural and tourist assets reported as damaged by the Ukrainian authorities. This includes damage to sites and buildings of heritage value (estimated at $2.41 billion); damage to works of art, collections and cultural repositories ($161 million); damage to buildings and workshops dedicated to the cultural and creative industries ($262 million); and damage to tourism facilities ($650 million). The Kharkiv region was by far the worst affected, accounting for almost 25% of the damage recorded, followed by Donetsk region at 14.7% and Odesa region at 7.6%.
Since February 2022, the culture and tourism sectors have also accumulated lost revenues of $19.6 billion, representing an increase of 30% in one year. More than half of this loss – $10.6 billion – has been incurred by the city of Kyiv alone, mainly due to the fall in tourist numbers and the sudden slowdown of the creative industries.
According to UNESCO, nearly $9 billion will need to be raised between 2024 and 2033 to finance the recovery and reconstruction efforts. This funding requirement has increased by 30% in one year.
UNESCO has raised USD $66 Million to alleviate the emergency
To meet the most urgent needs, UNESCO has raised more than $66 million over the past 2 years from its Member States and the private sector. Japan alone has supported the Organization’s efforts in Ukraine to the tune of almost $26 million. These funds have been used to implement dozens of short- and medium-term actions in the fields of culture, heritage, education and the media. The Organization has also opened a liaison office in Kyiv to coordinate all of its operations, currently staffed by a team of around twenty people. (@OnuItalia)
