On 22 November 2024, Ihor Vuytsyk, Head of the Lviv Agrarian Chamber, and monitoring officer Davyd Kravchenko carried out a monitoring mission as part of the UN World Food Programme’s Institutional Food Programme within the city of Lviv.
The monitoring team visited four institutions participating in the UNWFP Institutional Food Programme, namely: Lviv Regional Council Public Institution ‘Lviv Scientific Lyceum No. 1 named after B. I. Antonych”, the Lviv Regional Clinical Diagnostic and Treatment Cardiology Centre, the Lviv Regional Clinical Psychiatric Hospital, and the Lviv Regional Council’s “Oberig” Multidisciplinary Educational and Rehabilitation Centre.
Orest Ivashkiv, Director of Scientific Lyceum No. 1, explained that the institution cares for and provides hot meals to 60 children. Mr Orest emphasised that the school’s mission is to restore and strengthen children’s health, provide general education, and promote the principles of rehabilitative pedagogy, as the institution offers not only educational but also medical and psychological services. Thanks to the support of the UN World Food Programme, the school is able to redirect funds saved on food costs towards repairs and improvements to the living conditions of the children in the residential facility.
The Lviv Regional Clinical Psychiatric Hospital is a leading medical institution providing highly professional psychiatric care and support to patients with various mental health needs; this includes not only medical care but also emotional and social support. The hospital has been participating in the Institutional Food Programme for 11 months. During this time, the institution has received over 5 tonnes of long-life food products worth almost 1.7 million UAH. Olga Kuryliak, the hospital’s senior nurse, shared her impressions of working with the UN World Food Programme and the Lviv Agrarian Chamber.
“The hospital receives significant assistance through this programme. The institution provides daily hot meals to approximately 770 people each month. We can plan the procurement of other necessary goods, knowing that we will receive regular supplies of a specified quantity of high-quality products. This allows us to improve patients’ diets and, consequently, the quality of their stay at the facility,” emphasised Olga Kuryliak.
During the visit, members of the monitoring mission inspected the warehouse and kitchen facilities and spoke with the staff.
The Lviv Regional Cardiology Centre focuses its activities on providing modern, high-tech services in the field of cardiology and cardiac surgery, covering inpatient, outpatient and diagnostic care for adult patients. The centre treats approximately 300 patients every month. The centre’s dietitian, Halyna Beshley, highlighted the high quality of the food received from the UN World Food Programme as part of the Institutional Food Programme. Ms Beshley also noted that the hospital is unable to bake its own bread, and as the patients’ dietary requirements mean that flour is rarely used in the menu, surplus flour accumulates whilst other food items have already been used up. Consequently, the hospital cannot receive the necessary food supplies because it has not used up all its flour stocks. Galina Beshley proposed making changes to the food basket by reducing the amount of flour and replacing it with cereals.
The ‘Oberig’ Educational and Rehabilitation Centre was established to ensure the right of children with special educational needs, particularly those with complex developmental disorders, to receive an education, integrate into society and achieve all-round development. In particular, the Centre works with children who have intellectual disabilities combined with speech impairments, Down’s syndrome, autism spectrum disorders with severe speech impairments, intellectual disabilities complicated by psycho-organic syndrome, and intellectual disabilities combined with cognitive and behavioural disorders.
The Centre’s director, Myroslava Lipitska, thanked the UN World Food Programme and the Lviv Agrarian Chamber for their help in organising high-quality and nutritious meals for 110 children, 15 of whom are internally displaced persons.
“During the war, institutions such as our Centre are of vital importance, as more and more children are arriving here from parts of Ukraine where active hostilities are ongoing. Comprehensive support for these institutions is a crucial component in helping children who have survived the horrors of war to adapt to their new living conditions. And ensuring high-quality and nutritious meals is undoubtedly a priority,” emphasised Myroslava Lipitska. “We are sincerely grateful to the donors for the food provided and will make every effort to develop our cooperation in the future,” added Ms Lipitska.
The participants of the monitoring mission inspected the warehouse premises and the kitchen, familiarised themselves with the menu, and visited the canteen during lunch.
Source: Lviv Agrarian Chamber