Berezhna sets 2025 deadline for culture ministry separation

Acting Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine Tetyana Berezhna admits that the process of separating strategic communications into a separate institution should be completed by the end of 2025, and information policy will most likely remain with the Ministry of Culture.

"When Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko introduced me to cultural institutions and the ministry staff, she announced a political decision that strategic communications would be separated from the Ministry of Culture. We clearly understand that, in addition to strategic communications, the ministry is also engaged in information policy," Berezhna said in a comment to the Interfax-Ukraine agency on Monday.

According to her, the government is currently discussing which part should be transferred to the Prime Minister's Office or the Cabinet Secretariat: only strategic communications, or together with information policy.

"But we tend to believe that strategic communications are more a function of structural strengthening and unity of voice of the Cabinet of Ministers, and in general of the government both in Ukraine and in the world. And this is a function that can be transferred, and can be much better implemented under the Cabinet of Ministers. And information policy, where policy is formed, will most likely be left to the Ministry of Culture, but discussions are still ongoing," she added.

When asked in what format strategic communications will exist, the Acting Minister noted that the organizational and legal form of the institution that will be engaged in strategic communications depends on two things: whether it will be properly funded; whether it will be able to perform its functions.

"When we clearly understand what sources of funding we have for it: whether it is government, or it can be donor, partner funding. When we clearly identify all the functions of this institution, accordingly, the organizational and legal form will also be decided in the process. Therefore, we cannot talk about it now, as well as about the final vision," she replied.

She also noted that it has not yet been decided whether it will be a central executive body or a government office.

Among other things, Berezhna said that the process of separating the ministry should be completed by the end of 2025.

As reported, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko previously stated that the government plans to later separate information policy and strategic communications into a separate direction with a clear mandate and resources in order to "focus on working on the information stability of the country."

At the end of July, Deputy Head of the Parliamentary Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy Yevheniia Kravchuk (Servant of the People faction) stated that it was not known when the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications would be separated, since this would require a vote on the appointment of a minister in the Verkhovna Rada.