HDC expanded the list of mine action operators for the compensation program
February 12, 2025
The company "Kyivstar" and the Foundation "Come Back Alive" have surpassed their goal and accumulated UAH 106,646,045 as part of a joint demining fundraising campaign — "We Live Here 2.0". The funds collected within the project will allow providing the sappers of the Support Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with Ukrainian-made robotic platforms, transport, and communications. The initiative is implemented with the informational support of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine.
Kyivstar made an additional charitable contribution and transferred UAH 20 million to bolster the fundraising, which will accelerate the transfer of all necessary equipment within the project to the military. The total amount of assistance from Kyivstar within the initiative is UAH 50 million. Kyivstar fulfilled its commitment — the aforementioned funds represent the second part of the 100 million UAH assistance for the Armed Forces announced after the cyberattack at the end of 2023.
"This project — is an example of how the unity of business, citizens, and the state yields real results. Together we are not just collecting funds; we are providing concrete, systemic assistance to the army, equipping sappers with modern technologies. Thank you to everyone who joined — your support makes Ukraine stronger and safer," comments Oleksandr Komarov, CEO of Kyivstar.
The project launched in August 2024, and in six months it accumulated over 106 million UAH thanks to the contributions of caring Ukrainians, subscribers and employees of the mobile operator, and representatives of businesses and culture. In particular, nearly 35 million UAH was raised thanks to company subscribers who activated the charitable Superpower "Help for the Armed Forces" or an SMS subscription. Another 22.1 million UAH was raised by caring Ukrainians and socially responsible businesses that joined the fundraiser.
"Ukraine today is the most potentially mined country in the world — 20% of our territory requires surveying. For people to return to de-occupied and border regions, for businesses to resume operations, and for farmers to sow fields, the state, private operators, and philanthropists are actively working on demining the territories. While just two years ago there was not a single demining machine in Ukraine, today there are over 200 of them, and this number is growing. And consequently, the territory that has been cleared of explosive ordnance is growing. I am sincerely grateful to the partners for their initiatives that make our lands safer. I am especially grateful that the collected funds will be used to purchase Ukrainian-made equipment, which will additionally support our economy," noted the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yuliia Svyrydenko.
The initiative helps save the lives of sappers, because the territories will be demined not only by people but also by Ukrainian-made equipment — ground robotic complexes, as well as Vampire drones, which will provide remote demining through detonations.
"This project is about systemic nature, efficiency, and saving the lives of our sappers. 'We Live Here 2.0' — is a joint initiative of Kyivstar and the 'Come Back Alive' foundation to provide a comprehensive ecosystem of remote demining tools. Thanks to the accumulated funds, sappers of the 4 newly created companies of engineering unmanned systems of the Support Forces of the AFU will receive Ukrainian-made ground robotic complexes 'Termit' and 'Tarhan', transport, communications, power supply, an aerial component for situational awareness and remote demining via detonations, as well as maintanance workshops. The successful completion of the project — is a contribution not only to saving the lives of our military but also civilians living in de-occupied territories or near the front line," says Taras Chmut, director of the "Come Back Alive" Foundation.
Among the businesses that joined the support of "We Live Here 2.0" are: the IT company Intellias, Ukreximbank, Visa, SOVA, Genuisee, Ukraїner, and others. The first Ukrainian super-app for dog and cat owners – Bubibo, also joined the initiative.
