“Brave 5.0”: Applications Open for Grant Program Supporting Women in Communities

Applications are now open in Ukraine for the fifth wave of the Brave project, aimed at strengthening the economic empowerment of women in rural areas and small towns across the country.

Women developing businesses in rural areas are particularly vulnerable to broader economic challenges. According to research, 55% of women entrepreneurs identify economic crises as key barriers to business development. The situation is further complicated by gender stereotypes, which remain deeply rooted in rural communities and limit access to resources, support, and professional opportunities.*

The Brave 5.0 program is designed to help women overcome these challenges. Its core focus includes advancing women’s entrepreneurship, supporting small businesses, and building communities of women leaders at the local level.

The project has been implemented since 2022 with the support of Raiffeisen Bank (the bank's contribution to five waves of the project amounted UAH 25 million), in partnership with the agricultural holding Astarta-Kyiv and the Believe in Yourself Charitable Foundation. The program combines educational, financial, and practical support for small business development in Ukraine.

Eligibility Criteria

Women entrepreneurs living in rural areas or small towns and/or belonging to vulnerable categories are invited to apply. These categories include women who:

• have a child with a disability;
• are raising three or more children;
• are widows;
• are veterans;
• are mothers of children killed in the war against Russia;
• are spouses of combat participants;
• have internally displaced person (IDP) status.

A mandatory requirement for participation in Brave 5.0 is having a formally registered business (sole proprietorship or LLC) operating for at least three months as of February 16, 2026.

The project geography includes the Poltava, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Zhytomyr, Ternopil, Chernihiv, and Kharkiv regions.

What Participants Will Receive

The program plans to engage approximately 200 applicants. Among them, 75 women will receive training in business plan development, and 30 winners will receive:

• Grants of up to UAH 100,000 to purchase equipment for business development in any production sector;
• Training at MIM Business School, providing specialized knowledge in business management, as well as training from experts in financial and digital literacy;
• Community and support, including mental health support training and leadership development programs, as well as access to a women’s entrepreneurial community;
• Webinars from an expert in culture and education, specifically for entrepreneurs developing projects related to book culture, reading, and cultural spaces (including bookstores and bookstore cafés).

Applications can be submitted by completing the application form by March 15, 2026. Detailed information on participation conditions and competition rules is available via the provided link.

Contribution to Community Resilience

The Brave 5.0 program aims to support socially responsible small and medium-sized businesses, contributing to job creation and strengthening the economic resilience and self-sufficiency of communities during wartime and throughout the post-war recovery period.

Each grant recipient commits to contributing a portion of their products or services, aligned with their business activity, to support their local community.

Key expected outcomes of Brave 5.0 include:

• Expansion of up to 30 microbusinesses within communities;
• Business planning training for approximately 100 participants;
• Formation of an active women entrepreneurs’ community across seven regions;
• Implementation of local social initiatives;
• Development of a scalable practical model for supporting women’s entrepreneurship in Ukraine.

Brave 5.0 invites women seeking to grow their businesses and strengthen the economic capacity of their communities to apply and join the program.

* Source: Report “Needs and Challenges of Ukrainian Women Entrepreneurs during the Full-Scale War,” January 2024 (link).