High Stakes for Human Rights as Kharkiv Battles Corruption
As Ukraine fights against the brutal consequences of Russia’s invasions of 2014 and 2022, its civil society is battling to stop corruption that slows progress on reforms and undermines the war effort.
Wartime reconstruction is a sector in which this struggle will play out. This report by the Kharkiv Anti-Corruption Center and Human Rights First highlights recent findings of irregularities in local reconstruction contracts in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. It encourages Ukrainian authorities and international partners like the U.S. government to support and act on the work of local Ukrainian activists who are serving as watchdogs against corruption.
Tracking Kharkiv’s spending is especially vital in wartime, because repairs to critical infrastructure cannot wait for the war to end.