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By Shawn Slaght
Saskatchewan Polytechnic announced it is launching a $2-million international project to help support the reintegration of women veterans in Ukraine.
The five-year project, funded by Global Affairs Canada, aims to help women in the Ukrainian Armed Forces transition to civilian life through employment programs, career training and psychosocial support.
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The funding was awarded through a competitive bid process that Saskatchewan Polytechnic entered to manage and deliver the program.
According to the institution, the number of female soldiers in Ukraine has increased about 15 times to around 70,000 and is expected to grow with the full-scale invasion.
Angela Wojcichowsky, director of international projects for Saskatchewan Polytechnic and responsible for overseeing the Women’s Veterans Reintegration Project, said employment supports within the Ukrainian Ministry of Veteran Affairs and the Ukrainian State Employment Centre are still developing.
“Currently, there are lots of projects in Ukraine to support military veterans on the psychological PTSD side of things. But what we really saw was a gap in employment — how to transition what you were doing in the army,” Wojcichowsky said.
“For example, if you were a logistics person, could you translate those skills into a supply chain management job? Or did your training in the military prepare you for certain jobs within civil society?
“We at Saskatchewan Polytechnic are currently working with the Canadian Armed Forces, and we have a program that helps transition military service personnel into civilian careers. We’re using that as the base for this project, and it will evolve into what the needs are of the Ukrainian system.”
Based on that experience, the school plans to adapt the program to the Ukrainian system and develop resources, trainers’ handbooks and assessment tools for career development.
“We are the implementing partner of the project, so we provide all the project management support. We hire staff in Ukraine and trainers that deliver components of the project, and then we utilize Saskatchewan Polytechnic faculty to deliver some of the training,” Wojcichowsky said.
This isn’t the school’s first international project in Ukraine. Saskatchewan Polytechnic has taken part in three major projects there since 2005. It has also helped with vocational education and training reforms in Vietnam, Ghana and Jordan.
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