We are excited to officially launch the project “PowHer – Enhancing Digital Opportunities for Women in Ukraine through Swedish-Ukrainian Partnership”. The project runs from late 2025 to 2027 with funding from the Swedish Institute under the SI Ukraine Cooperation Programme.

PowHer aims to empower Ukrainian women, particularly internally displaced persons (IDPs), single mothers, and women affected by war, through digital reskilling and entrepreneurship. At a time when the war has deeply disrupted the labour market and Ukraine’s EU integration requires alignment with European digital and employment standards, the project contributes to inclusive recovery and long-term economic resilience.

LIFE Academy leads the project in close collaboration with Stockholm University (Department of Computer and Systems Sciences), KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Digital Learning), Ukrainian Distance Learning System in Lviv, Dnipro University of Technology, and Sustainable Development and Innovation Agency in Dnipro. The partnership combines Swedish expertise in digital pedagogy, AI, and capacity development with Ukrainian experience in education, community-based support, and working with women and IDPs in crisis conditions. Together, the partners are co-creating a programme that is both technologically advanced and firmly grounded in local realities.

A central component of PowHer is the training of 50–60 women trainers and educators from Ukrainian NGOs, universities, and training institutions. Through a hybrid programme equivalent to 6 ECTS credits, participants will strengthen their competencies in digital tools, AI applications, entrepreneurship, and inclusive, learner-centred pedagogy. The programme combines webinars, mentorship, project-based learning, and practical application, where participants design and deliver their own training initiatives for women and IDPs. A selected group will also participate in an intensive knowledge exchange and networking event in Sweden, further strengthening long-term cooperation between the two countries.

At the same time, PowHer develops an open-access, multilingual digital learning environment aimed at a broader group of women across Ukraine. The goal is to reach at least 1,000 women and IDPs with courses in digital literacy, AI awareness, foundational skills, and social entrepreneurship. By offering flexible and accessible online formats, the programme enables participation even in a context marked by instability, displacement, and infrastructure disruptions. The training supports women in improving employability, achieving greater economic independence, and actively contributing to Ukraine’s reconstruction.

The project also establishes a digital Community of Practice that will function as a long-term platform for mentorship, peer learning, and knowledge exchange between Swedish and Ukrainian professionals. This platform will host open educational resources, methodological tools, and AI-supported learning functions that can be continuously developed and adapted. The ambition is for this ecosystem to remain active beyond the project’s formal end, serving as a sustainable hub for inclusive digital capacity development.

By focusing on employment, gender equality, and digital transformation, PowHer contributes to Ukraine’s path toward EU integration and to a more inclusive and sustainable recovery. Strengthening women’s digital competencies not only increases access to the labour market but also reinforces civil society, economic stability, and democratic resilience.

PowHer is therefore more than a training initiative. It is a collaborative investment in the future, built on co-creation, mutual learning, and long-term partnership between Sweden and Ukraine.

This project is funded by the Swedish Institute.