On 26 February 2026, a meeting of the Barrier-Free Council took place in Kyiv. Yuliia Svyrydenko, Prime Minister of Ukraine, chaired the event, with the participation of the First Lady Olena Zelenska. The event brought together members of the government and parliament, representatives of the Council of Europe, the UN system, territorial communities and civil society.

During the meeting, seven flagship projects to be implemented in the coming years were presented. The focus was put on educational and awareness-raising initiatives in the field of accessibility, the development of training programmes for 2026 within the framework of the social change campaign “No barriers – it means you can”, as well as priorities for implementing state barrier-free policy, including employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

“Over five years, significant progress has been made in advancing the barrier-free agenda. From the first steps and initial discussions – when many people began to see it broader than an issue concerning only people with disabilities – to the current stage, where each ministry implements its own barrier-free project. In total, there are 25 projects covering all spheres of public life,” the First Lady emphasised. Olena Zelenska also noted that the presentation of the State standard for correct barrier-free language will take place soon. The content of the Standard was developed with expert support from the Council of Europe within the framework of the project “Strengthening the social dimension in Ukraine”.

The Barrier-Free Council is an advisory body of the government of Ukraine established to create a barrier-free environment in Ukraine. The Council of Europe representatives are among its members. The National Strategy is implemented through an Action Plan carried out by central executive authorities, regional administrations and communities.

The Council of Europe will continue to systematically support the implementation of the National Strategy for Creating a Barrier-Free Environment in Ukraine until 2030, in line with the priorities of the Council of Europe project “Strengthening the social dimension in Ukraine”, implemented within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” for 2023-2026.