Klitschko: Major shelter renovations completed in 76 Kyiv schools over two years — now 55% of students study in-person

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced that over the past two years, major renovations of shelters have been completed in 76 educational institutions in the capital. According to him, the main goal of the ongoing work is to ensure that children can study in-person in conditions where air raid alerts have become a regular part of everyday life. The head of the capital wrote about this on his Telegram channel, as reported by RBC-Ukraine.

Scale of the renovation program

According to Klitschko, shelter renovation work is currently ongoing in another 33 educational institutions in Kyiv. Thus, the overall program covers at least 109 schools and kindergartens where the adaptation of protective structures to meet the requirements of the educational process is underway or has already been completed. The mayor emphasized that all efforts are aimed at enabling children to study in-person wherever safety conditions allow.

New dual-use facilities

In addition to repairing existing shelters, nine new dual-use facilities with a total capacity of 4,781 places have been built in Kyiv over the same period. According to Klitschko, construction of another four facilities providing 1,774 places is scheduled for completion this year. The total projected capacity of all newly built and under-construction shelters will exceed 6,500 people.

Example from the Solomianskyi District

Illustrating the program's results, Klitschko used a school in the Solomianskyi District to show what a renovated shelter looks like. He noted that prior to the repairs, the room was not adapted for the educational process — people could only wait out air raids there. Following the major overhaul, the 600-square-meter shelter has been transformed into a fully functional learning space. The shelter is designed for 600 people, and all 353 students of the school can now attend classes in-person. Simultaneously with the shelter, the school's canteen and gym were also renovated.

Context: Transition to in-person format

Klitschko noted that currently 55% of students in Kyiv study in-person. Earlier, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved new rules for schools regarding the organization of studies during prolonged air raid alerts, which is also aimed at minimizing the transition to remote learning. The presented figures and examples indicate that the program to modernize school protection infrastructure in Kyiv is systematic and encompasses both the repair of existing shelters and the construction of new facilities.