In brief: Ukraine’s Agrarian Ministry and the United Nations (UN) have launched a new aid programme for farmers whose land was affected by landmines. Applications run Nov. 2-30, aiming to help farms in Kharkiv, Kherson and Mykolaiv regions bring contaminated fields back into production.
Farmers in 25 Ukrainian communities, whose land has been mined during Russia’s invasion, can now apply for help to bring their fields back into production.
Starting Monday, Nov. 2, applications can be submitted through the State Agrarian Register (SAR), and will be accepted until Nov. 30.
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According to the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, the program covers parts of the Kharkiv, Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, and is run jointly with the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP), in partnership with Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy and Environment.
Approved applicants will receive vouchers to buy seeds and fertilizer, as well as to pay for their agrochemical soil testing.
The programme, funded by Austria, Canada, Finland and Poland, will also include advice from agronomists and assistance related to humanitarian demining.
Who can apply
To qualify, a farm must have between 3 and 300 hectares (7-741 acres) and be located in one of the 25 designated communities.
Fifteen are located in Kharkiv region, among them Izium, Balakliia and Chuhuiv. Four are in Kherson region, including Vysokopillia, and six are in Mykolaiv region, including Snihurivka.
Fields must also lie at least 20 kilometers (12 miles) from areas of active fighting.
Applicants do not need to have cleared their land first – a step some farmers in recaptured areas already took on their own, during these five years of invasion.
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In cases where land has not yet been checked, the program may provide non-technical survey, clearance and training on the risks posed by explosive ordnance.
Meanwhile, farmers whose fields have been confirmed safe will get support needed to restart production.
Participants will be chosen based on set criteria, with each farm’s recovery needs and the funds available. According to the ministry, those who have not received comparable aid in the past will be given priority.
Farmers clearing fields on their own
Fighting and the threat of mines have left many growers unable to cultivate their land, the ministry said, adding that fields need fresh investment even after clearance.
Experts interviewed by AFP for a July 2025 report described Ukraine’s soil as probably among the most mined anywhere. At the time, government figures put roughly 20% of Ukraine, equivalent to about 123,000 square kilometers (47,500 square miles), under suspicion of contamination.
The UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) adviser in Ukraine, Paul Heslop, estimated that up to 10 million explosive devices may be buried across the country.
The losses increasingly showed up in the harvest; then-Agriculture Minister Vitaliy Koval said that only 24 million (59 million acres) of Ukraine’s 42 million hectares (104 million acres) of farmland were safe to use and under Kyiv’s control. He added that grain production had dropped by a third, to 56 million tons in 2024.
Many farmers in recaptured villages, including those in Kharkiv region, have begun clearing their land on their own, using metal detectors, modified tractors and even garden rakes, at times setting off mines.
“Absolutely everyone demines by themselves,” Igor Kniazev, one of the farmers interviewed, told AFP.
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