Policy Brief / From Support to Survival: Ukraine’s Civil Society After the USAID Withdrawal

Ukrainian civil society is widely recognized as a driving force behind reforms, a watchdog of democracy, and the backbone of the country’s resilience. The abrupt halt in U.S. assistance in February 2025 has dealt a heavy blow to Ukraine and its civil society. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion, USAID alone has provided $37.6 billion to Ukraine. Now, many national and local NGOs, as well as independent media, face existential threats. In 2024 alone, the U.S. supported 17 major projects with a total budget of $340 million, funding think tanks, human rights organizations, independent media, and anti-corruption initiatives.

Without clear priorities, coordination, and increased support from remaining Western partners—first and foremost Germany—Ukraine’s civil society risks severe weakening, with serious consequences for the country’s resilience, essential reforms, and EU accession.

This policy brief was developed by the team of the German-Ukrainian Bureau in April and May 2025, based on a desk research methodology using publicly available data. In addition, the authors of the paper, Inna and Mattia Nelles, conducted a series of interviews with representatives of civil society to identify adaptive strategies and current needs. We thank all the experts contributing to this paper, including Inna Pidluska and Wilfried Jilge.

This Policy Brief assesses the impact of the suspension of U.S. funding on Ukraine's civil society sector, looks at some of the adaptation strategies, and proposes instruments through which Germany and other donors can help mitigate the negative consequences of this development and support the sustainability of Ukraine's democratisation and EU accession efforts.

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