04-10-2023

DHL Group and SOS Children's Villages Ukraine have signed a new partnership agreement in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. Vadim Sidoruk, Country Head of DHL Express Ukraine, and Serhii Lukashov, National Director of SOS Children's Villages Ukraine, reaffirm their joint commitment with the signing of the GoTeach framework agreement. DHL Group's GoTeach program aims to improve career opportunities for young people living in socially disadvantaged or difficult circumstances due to poverty, loss of loved ones, war, or flight. "We have already implemented some activities for and with Ukrainian young people in the past.

Now, we are happy that the partnership with SOS Children's Villages Ukraine is official and that we can create further offers to be able to open a hope and future perspectives for the young, war-torn people," says Vadim Sidoruk. "We have no planning certainty due to the war and have to take high security precautions, but nonetheless we try to implement as many activities as possible. Education leads to more stability and more prosperity in the long run. We cannot change the past, but we can bring something to the present and the future."

DHL Group gives teenagers and young adults their first insights into a professional working environment and teaches basic skills such as writing a resume or job application training. Mentoring programs are planned, as well as tours of DHL logistics sites in the country. In every GoTeach engagement, DHL Group employees contribute their individual skills, time and experience.

Serhii Lukashov National Director of SOS Children's Villages Ukraine: "This partnership will promote the employability of young people and contribute to sustainability in Ukraine. It will provide opportunities for integration into the world of work and help young people improve their self-leadership skills. This is particularly important now, during the war in Ukraine, as there are not enough jobs and young people do not have sufficient skills and experience to find work. The GoTeach partnership between SOS Children's Villages Ukraine and DHL Ukraine is helping to close this gap."

The core objective of the partnership is to improve the employability of young people, which is why DHL Group has maintained a GoTeach partnership with SOS Children's Villages international since 2011. The organization establishes contact with local young people and families. The focus of the joint work is on accompanying young people between the ages of 15 and 25 in the transition from school to working life. When looking for a job, young people in Ukraine face obstacles characteristic of this age group, such as lack of experience and skills for professional adaptation, social immaturity and insecurity. All this increases tensions in the labor market. Young people of this age are at risk of social exclusion.

SOS Children's Villages Ukraine currently already offers a number of services, such as an SOS Village in the city of Brovary, six social centers, a psychosocial support program, a program to support children with injuries, a foster care program, and one to promote independence.

Source: DHL Group