Ukrainian Institute

The Ukrainian Institute is a state institution acting in the field of cultural diplomacy. The institution’s activities are aimed at improving the understanding and perception of Ukraine in the world and the development of its cultural ties with other countries. Established by the Government of Ukraine, the Institute operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Ukrainian Institute, UI, was founded in 2018 by the Government of Ukraine and is affiliated to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. UI is a public (state) institution governed by a Supervisory Board, 3/4 of which consists of independent professionals with background in culture, education, and communications. UI funding is composed of both public funds (the state budget of Ukraine) and donors’ support (private and public, international, and domestic). UI’s purpose is to improve knowledge and understanding of Ukraine internationally and to enhance the country’s reputation in the world. Key programme areas include Arts Programmes, Cross-Sectoral Programmes, Academic Programmes, Civil Society, Ukrainian Language, Cultural Diplomacy Policy Dialogue.

Over five years of operations, UI team has implemented over 400 projects and events in 24 countries and reached millions of people in 82 countries through communications campaigns and media coverage. UI flagship annual programmes include proMotion (support of international promotion of new Ukrainian films), Extra Sound (participation of Ukrainian music talents at key international music festivals), Visualise (support of visual arts exhibitions), Ukrainian Studies Programme (support of Ukrainian studies and scholarly activities at international universities and think tanks), Drahoman Prize (annual award for literature translators from Ukrainian into other languages) etc. UI programmed and implemented the Ukraine-Austria Cultural Year 2019 and co-organised the UK/Ukraine Season of Culture in 2022-2023. Finally, UI is one of the programming partners of EuroFest, a large-scale Ukrainian cultural programme during the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool.

UI has been operating in a more than a dozen countries, mostly in Europe and North America. UI has doubled its operations internationally since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in Ukraine in February 2022.